The Course of Venom
by Zephyrbolt
Summary: When a snake bites you, you're supposed to suck the poison out. But if you don't even notice the bite in the first place, it can be too late... (Crossover of Hetalia and Lion King II, Germany/fem!Italy, rated T to be safe)
1. I Snake's Smile

**Updated version: 12/5 Nothing much changed, just grammar things and the like.**

**Welcome to my newest project. Yes. It is a Lion King II/Hetalia crossover. Deal with it. It won't follow the movie exactly. But some scenes with be similar to the movie and some will be entirely of my own creation. This chapter is mostly the latter.**

**Alice is fem!Italy, by the way.**

**Now without any further delay, please enjoy the first chapter of The Course of Venom~ ^^**

* * *

I. Snake's Smile

An orange butterfly flew around the courtyard of a glorious blue and white palace, every flap of its small wings taking it further and further away from the hands of an equally small child. The child carried a dainty, fragile aura about here, however, she was not weak in this sort; she was actually quite the wild child (a trait she got from her mother, much to her father's dismay). The girl was only ten years of age, and she had red curls (and one strange little curl that stuck out above the others…) that bounced as she tried every harder to grab the butterfly. The insect seemed to enjoy torturing her, as if the two of them were engaged in a game.  
"Hey! Come back! I won't hurt you!" She called, her voice sweet and innocent, although the butterfly seemed to know better and just flew higher, ignoring her.

"Alice! There you are!" A voice called, grabbing the child's attention, the butterfly long forgotten. Alice looked to see who it was that called her, and she smiled as she saw a blonde man with strangely large eyebrows who wore a blue and white tailcoat, the standard uniform of soldiers.  
She ran up to this man, hugging him around the waist. "Uncle Arthur, I'm right here!" She said in that sweet voice of hers, hoping to ease the obvious worry he was feeling for her. Arthur was in fact very worried about the girl, and his face softened, knowing that she was safe. "Princess, you mustn't go very far," he warned her, even though she had been through the lecture several times. "It's time for your lessons." At his words, Arthur held out his hand for the child to take, and once she did, they began to walk throughout the courtyard toward the main entrance of the palace. "Today you'll be learning several phrases in Latin, as well as reviewing history of the Austro-Prussian War…"  
As Arthur spoke; Alice couldn't help but trail off into her own little world that only a child could live in. It wasn't like she held any sort of disdain for the man; Arthur was like family to her (and everyone else in the palace; her grandfather had taken him in at a young age and he was like an uncle to the young princess)…it was just, sometimes he was boring and nagging. And yet there were other times when he would tell her fantastic stories of the magical world all around them which he claimed he saw (Arthur once said Alice could see it too, if she would only relax, and the creatures did not like restlessness). Arthur's tales fed her thirst for adventure. She wanted to fight dragons, not learn Mozart! However, it was her father's wishes that she grow up to be a lady, and she would compile, if only to please him. It was the least she could do.  
And then she would run off onto some adventure with her mother's blessing. But what the king didn't know wouldn't kill him.

* * *

"The war ended in a-"  
"A stalemate. I know, I know!" Alice didn't mean to interrupt her father when he spoke, it was just that she had heard this story so many times, and she was bored of it! Besides, what she need to know the past for? She was a live-in-the-moment kind of princess.  
Alice's father, King Roderich, frowned a bit at his daughter's words. The king wore a uniform that was similar to the one that Arthur wore, only his was that much more extravagant, and he carried a sharp, regal air about him, as most kings do.

Roderich had taken it upon himself to home-school his daughter and teach her how to proper and how to be a lady, even though he could clearly see in her eyes that she would much rather be outside exploring. He appreciated the fact that she was trying her very best, and he knew someday all the information would come in handy. Besides, it wasn't like he was going to get any such reaction out of Alice's older brother, Lovino, who wanted to be king, but wasn't willing to put forth all the effort and such. He could also see it in his son's eyes that he didn't like what he was doing to Alice either.  
The king sighed. "Well then, Alice, could you please explain to me the Austro-Prussian War?"  
His sole student cleared her throat before she stood up out of her seat, facing her father with clear pride of her father. "The Austro-Prussian War started when King Heinrich II assassinated King Augustus." It hurt, to speak of her grandfather as if he were just a figure of the past. Alice never knew him, but she felt as if she did. "At this point, the Kingdom of Austria declared war on the Kingdom of Prussia. The war went on for three years, and ended with Heinrich II taking his final breath due to one of our soldiers; Francis Bonnefuey, who sadly was then engaged in a one-on-one fight with a Prussian paratrooper, a Vash Zwingli. Both of them were lost.  
Roderich nodded, giving her the okay to go on.  
"To this day our kingdom remains enemies with the Kingdom of Prussia. A peace treaty was signed by newly appointed King Gilbert and, well…you." Alice finished, still not comfortable with calling her father by his name.

* * *

"…and to this day we are enemies." A blonde child said, as if he were topping off the lecture that Alice had just given on the other side of the land. He was eleven-years old, only a year older than Alice, only he was forced to mature early because of his brother suddenly dying and his other brother becoming king.  
"…And what is the conclusion you have taken from this?" A snake-like voice called from the shadows, belonging to an albino man adorned with white fur robes that only someone of his status could afford to wear.  
"…That the people in the Kingdom of Austria murdered my brother in cold blood." The boy said, looking to the mysterious albino, as if for approval.  
The man smiled. "Correct. Very good, kleinen Bruder."

* * *

It was late in the night when Alice awoke. She didn't know what compelled her to arise, but she got a bad feeling in the air, as if something bad was about to happen. Donned only in a white nightgown, she slipped away into the night to investigate the strange feeling.  
When she reached the courtyard, she was careful to stay out of the sight of any guards. If Arthur (or any guard for that matter) caught her, then she didn't want to think about what would happen. She wasn't supposed to be out after her bedtime.  
There, standing at the main gates, was her big brother Lovino. He looked toward her and a look of relief seemed to come onto his face, as if he was worried about her. This confused Alice greatly as she walked toward her brother.

Lovino was only three years older than Alice. His hair was a darker brown than hers, but they both shared that strange curl (although his was on the other side of his head). He was never his father's favorite. Once Alice was born, everything changed…but at the same time, he didn't hate his sister. It wasn't her fault. Instead he blamed his father. He was the one who was changing her and making her behave like some pretty little dress up doll. If his plans went accordingly, tonight, that would all change.  
"Lovino? What are you doing out here?" The tiny princess asked. Even in the darkness, she could see the intensity that shined in her brother's green eyes; such a lovely color compared to the dull brown hers were. She always loved her eye color though; Lovino always told her that they were warm, like her.  
"Alice…" He paused, as if he were trying to find the right words to say. He had been rehearsing and planning this for weeks, and he chooses now to get choked up? "Alice, will you run away with me?"  
His question caught the ten-year old off guard. Whatever sleepiness she still had was blown away by now. "Run away…? Why?"  
"I can see it in your eyes. You don't like what Father makes you do. You don't want to be prim and proper like he wants you to," he explained. Yes, this was true, but Alice still loved her father, and she only wanted to make him happy. "So run away with me. We can be free together. You won't have to live by all these rules."  
"…" Alice was quiet.  
"…Alice?" Lovino's voice was almost pleading now, desperate for an answer.  
"…I won't," she said firmly. She saw her brother's eyes widen in surprise, but she was sure in her decision. "I can't just leave…maybe I don't like it…but…I just…can't. I'm sorry…"  
The older boy was left speechless for a few moments, until he turned his back to his sister and said: "Fine then. You won't leave with me, but I'm still going. Ciao!" He yelled at her as he ran away, not caring that there could be guards around that could catch both of them.  
She watched her big brother leave, and for some reason, she didn't move. She was frozen to the spot she stood in.  
And once he was gone from her sight, Alice fell to her knees and cried.

* * *

Lovino ran. He ran and ran until he couldn't run anymore. Where was he? He didn't care. As long as it wasn't there. Here he would have no rules to live by. No one to answer to. He would finally be free. However, it pained the boy that his sister had chosen not to come with him…  
"What do we have here?" A heavily accented voice said. Jeez, Lovino thought his accent was strange. He looked up and saw two soldiers approaching him, night guards he assumed. They both wore a red and black uniform; such a dark choice compared to his father's choices of blue and white. It was at that moment that Lovino realized that he had been caught by Prussian soldiers. Meaning he was in Prussian territory.  
"A little trespasser, it looks like." The second soldier, an albino with violet eyes, said, grabbing Lovino's arm and forcing him to stand. He struggled in the Prussian's grasp, trying to get away, but that only made the soldier tighten his grip.  
The first soldier walked over to the young prince. "Watch yourself, boy. We don't take very well to intruders here." He warned, as if he had suspicions that the boy could actually overpower a well-trained guard.  
"Whatever," Lovino spat. He knew how things in Prussia worked. He would be brought before the king and then it would be decided what to do with him. They would probably send (maybe even escort) him back to the palace (seeing as how he was the Prince of Austria, and Prussia probably didn't want to start a war anytime soon.). "I won't go back," he said, as if the soldiers knew who he was. He wouldn't be sent back to what he ran from.  
"Back?" The albino soldier asked.  
"It doesn't matter. We have to take him to the king," the other said, as if no one knew.

Lovino didn't seem to be afraid when he stared into the eyes of Prussia's king, Gilbert. His fierce red eyes burned with a fire that would surely scare even the strongest military commander (He suddenly thought of how scared Antonio might be if he were in his situation, giving a little grin, which he quickly hid away, lest it be noticed.) flinch, but it didn't strike a nerve in the prince's body, much to the man's dismay. Lovino noticed a runty looking blonde boy that looked about Alice's age seated next to the albino's throne.  
"You are Prince Lovino, correct?" The king asked, his voice slick, like a snake's.  
"Si-" Lovino started to say, but one of those soldiers (the albino one) from before had interrupted him.  
"Sir, this boy can't be the prince! He certainly isn't dressed like a royal," he gestured to Lovino's plain brown cloak.  
"Stille, general!" Gilbert suddenly snapped, hopping up from his throne. He walked over and stood in front of the dark-haired prince, wondering why he hadn't broken down yet. The king seemed to be examining his face, perhaps looking for something… "No. This is the prince." He suddenly declared. "I can see Roderich in his face, Elizaveta in his eyes…" Lovino noticed a twitch come across Gilbert's face when he said his mother's name. Had he not forgotten her yet? She was married, a queen, and she had children. It took all his willpower not to yell at him to get over the fact that she would never be his.

It seemed to be a fact that this particular soldier, a general, would be keeping watch over Lovino, as he was trying (and failing) to conduct an interrogation in the prison cell the prince was placed in.  
"Why have you come here?" The general said to the thirteen-year old for perhaps the fifth time, but there was still no answer. The prince's visage hadn't changed in the slightest bit (save for a few twitches whenever his sister was brought up), he just kept that stoic expression throughout the entire time. This only served to piss the albino general off.  
"Emil, stille! You are dismissed." Came Gilbert's snake-like voice, and as Emil was leaving, he said, just above a whisper, "He is an Edelstein. You must treat him like one." Once the general with a short temper (at least Lovino could hide his…) was gone, Gilbert, along with that mysterious blonde boy from before (it was like he followed him like a lost puppy), took seats across from him.  
And so the questions began. "Did your father send you?"  
"No," came the flat reply.  
"Are you lying to me?"  
"No."  
"Hm." Gilbert mused on the boy's answers. Then turning to the blonde boy, said, "Ludwig, what do you think?"  
Wait, what? He was going to let this boy who couldn't have been any older then Lovino himself decide his fate? Was he the only one who saw something wrong with this? "Hold on!" Lovino suddenly said. "Why should a runt like him decide what happens to me?"  
Truth be told, Ludwig was what one would think of when one thinks 'runt'. He was of a small stature, and he had an overall weak appearance; and yet, despite this, the boy carried a confident aura around him. In a way, the blonde reminded Lovino of Alice.  
Gilbert's eyes suddenly flared with that fire Lovino saw before, only this time the fire was much fiercer and it seemed to be protective. "Watch your tongue, boy!" He snapped, much like the soldier Emil was with had. And then it was suddenly over, his eyes returning to their normal bright warmth, like a strong fire in the fireplace at night. "Kleinen Bruder, what do you wish to happen to this intruder?"  
The blonde boy (who, according to the very limited German Lovino knew, was Gilbert's little brother, which would make him the prince) was silent for a few moments, as if thinking things over. "We should…let him live. Hear what he has to say. Go from there." His voice from quiet, and a bit monotone, like he didn't speak very much. Making decisions a king would…Gilbert was training the boy well.  
"You heard the prince," Gilbert said, as if he were a meager servant and not the king of a powerful kingdom. "What do you have to say?"  
Lovino then proceeded to explain to the king and prince how he ran away from the palace. He told him how he wanted Alice to be free from all the rules and regulations she was bound to like a dog on a leash.  
"Hm…" Gilbert hummed. "Tell me something Lovino…do you love your sister?" A sharp nod came as a reply before he even finished. What a foolish question to ask! Of course he loved her! "Do you love your father?" Now there was a more difficult one, and the young prince had to take a few moments to think of an answer for this one. His father was forcing Alice to become what she didn't want to be…anyone that hurt his sister in any way was an enemy to him.  
Lovino shook his head, giving an answer of 'no'. That same snake-like grin came across the albino king's face.  
"Perfect."

* * *

No one knew exactly what had happened to Lovino. Alice had been found by Arthur collapsed in a puddle of her own tears, and then taken to Roderich. Through sobs, she told everyone that the prince had run away and vanished in the night like a ghost out of one of Arthur's stories. In response, Roderich sent Arthur and his cavalry unit to find him. They searched to the best of their abilities, and once they reached the Prussian border, they were forced to turn back.  
The prince was gone.  
Tears were shed. Screams carried throughout the early morning air, all mourning the loss of the young prince.

* * *

And somewhere, a certain Prussian king adorned with white fur robes only someone of his status could afford to wear, grinned a grin that made him look like a snake.  
This would be too easy.

_'Soon, mein Bruder, soon. Your death will not have been in vain.'_

* * *

**Well that seemed productive. In case you couldn't tell who's who:**

**Alice: Kiara  
Roderich: Simba  
Lovino: Nuka  
Arthur: Zazu  
Gilbert: Zira  
Heinrich: Scar  
Ludwig: Kovu  
Augustus: Mufasa  
Francis: A random soldier, I'm using him to represent the hyenas  
Vash: Another random soldier  
Emil: Yet another random soldier**

**I think that's everyone that appeared here. Oh and by the way Lovino won't be spewing curses like crazy (at least not yet) and once Yao makes his appearance (if you can guess who he is I'll give you a virtual cookie :3) he won't be saying 'aru' ever other word. I just can't keep up with that. The same applies to Gilbert. In this he will be more serious, as to fit with Zira's character. So he won't be calling himself awesome every five seconds.**

**And translations:**  
**_Italian:  
_Ciao: Goodbye/hello in this case it is goodbye**  
**Si: Yes**

**_German:  
_kleinen: little**  
**Bruder: brother (so kleinen Bruder is little brother)_  
_Stille: Quiet/silence (he's pretty much saying 'shut up!' )**

**I think that's everything. Ciao for now~**

**-Zephyrbolt**


	2. II When the Snake Bites

**Updated: 12-11**

**One review, but who cares? That one review from mein awesome freshman is enough to keep me going.**

**New characters, yay! :D  
This chapter goes through when Kovu and Kiara meet to the part just before 'My Lullaby'.  
Oh by the way. Time period. Modern medieval.**

**If people are nice I'll post a special "chapter". In which Gilbert will sing. My Lullaby.**

* * *

II. When the Snake Bites

"Arthur, could you tell me a story about the fey?" Alice asked, the small girl looking up at her uncle-figure with her warm brown eyes. It had been about a week since Lovino disappeared, and Alice had asked her father if she could go outside the palace walls. Surprisingly enough, he agreed, but only if she had an escort with her at all times: Arthur.  
Currently they were hand in hand, walking, getting closer to the entrance to the vast forest that would eventually lead them to the border the nation shared with Prussia.  
"Of course, princess!" The blonde said enthusiastically, as he was always happy to share stories. Soon, he was so deeply involved in telling the story that he didn't notice Alice slip away…  
Soon the child was skipping through the forest, unaware she was getting closer to the Prussian border with every step.

* * *

"What do you mean you lost her?!" Roderich shouted at Arthur, who had returned to the palace reporting that Alice had gotten away from him.  
"I mean…I lost her. She got away somehow," the blonde cavalry officer explained, hoping that his honesty would get him out of trouble.  
"Must I do everything myself?! You are dismissed!" The king's booming voice didn't seem to be calming down at any moment, and once Arthur was gone from the room, he marched over to the intercom against the wall, and clicked a button for a certain room. "Antonio! Emilio!"  
"Roderich, calm down. I'm sure she's fine," his queen, a woman with long brown hair and green eyes, said.  
"What if she isn't, Elizaveta? What if something's happened to her? I can't lose her too."

Soon enough the two commanders of his army were in the room with him. They saluted their king, and once he explained that Alice was missing, looks of immediate worry came across their faces (but mostly on the one who seemed to be the older of the two, as the girl was like a little sister to him.).  
Antonio and Emilio were a duo of brothers, with Antonio being the older. They were very identical to one another, both sharing fluffy brown hair (although Emilio's was a bit longer and held in a ponytail) and bright, emerald eyes. They were the best that the Austrian army had.  
…or, something like that.  
The brothers were off at once, on their quest to find the missing princess (with a happy cheer from Antonio: "Emilio, we're going on an adventure!", which was soon followed by a "Could you shut up? This is serious business!" ).

* * *

By this time Alice was almost out of the forest, and almost into Prussia.  
"Princess! Are you out there chica?" A voice called. The princess recognized it as Antonio, a man that worked as the military commander, along with his younger brother Emilio. If her father sent him to come and find her, then he more than likely brought his brother…and Alice did not like that man very much. She ignored the calls of the commander and focused on crossing a small stream, via balancing on a log.

* * *

"Isn't that…Prussia?" Alice tilted her head curiously as she peered out from behind a tree, out into the outskirts of what she knew was a completely different country. There was a post a few yards out from the forest, where the border lay, that said "NOW ENTERING PRUSSIA". The child walked around so that she was no longer cowering behind the tree. It looked interesting, out there in that other country. Alice knew that she was to stay away from Prussia; she knew that it was their fault her grandfather had died. And yet…there was something…some sort of spark of curiosity…that made the princess walk toward the border.  
And then she was suddenly scooped up off her feet. "Where do you think you're going?" Came Emilio's voice. Soon she was face to face with the man, the man with the burning green eyes.  
"I wasn't going to…go…I swear!" Alice pleaded. Emilio only raised an eyebrow at her.  
"Emilio! That is no way to treat a princess!" Antonio, who had just made it out of the forest, said to his little brother. She was saved! Antonio walked over to her and took her away from the scary man and gently tapped her nose with his finger, earning a giggle from the child. "A princess deserves only the best."

Alice ended up going back to the palace, escorted by Antonio and Emilio, although she pretended that Emilio wasn't there and it was just Antonio. She liked the cheerful one much better than the serious one.

* * *

He watched her leave. Why hadn't he tried to stop her? Why didn't he come out and tell her that he was okay? From a wall-like structure near the border, Lovino watched his sister go back to the palace with those two brothers that he really couldn't stand. The only thing that mattered was that Alice was happy, and based on the smile she wore when Antonio was carrying her back into the forest; he could tell that she was happy.  
It wasn't as bad living in Prussia as he thought it would be. Gilbert would let him stay, but only because they had a common enemy: his father.  
Ludwig, the runty prince, had attempted to be friends with Lovino, but at every attempt, the older boy would just snap at him. He hadn't tried anything in the last few days, so he might be free from that burden. Honestly though, what was so special about him? It made him angry, how this boy, a boy who could barely make it out of a sparring match, got better treatment then Lovino did. He was older, smarter, more handsome, and he would make a better king then Ludwig ever would. Maybe it was because the Prussian prince was willing to follow all the rules that kinghood came with.  
Lovino would rather die than submit to rules like a chained animal.

* * *

Alice never gave up trying to cross that border into Prussia. And what do you know, one day she made it. She was officially in Prussian territory and she knew there was no going back now. She had chosen the perfect day when the brothers were out on military business (and for some reason her father only sent them after her if she wondered off too far.).  
The ten-year old princess was surprised there were no guards on duty. She didn't pay much heed to it, instead she just continued kicking rocks into a river that ran through the land (which, she assumed was part of that stream she had seen on the way here).  
It was a strange feeling, being somewhere you're not supposed to.

"Who are you?" An accented voice said from behind her. Every alarm went off in Alice's head. Get away. Get away from here. She tried to ignore them and turned around slowly to face whoever had found her. She was expecting a gruff looking soldier…not…this…boy.  
The boy didn't look like he could hurt anything. His hair was blonde and short, and his eyes were a piercing blue. She met his bright eyes with her own, and a wave of curiosity hit her. Those alarms sounded off again. This boy is Prussian. You can't trust him. Get away. The boy raised a brow as he waited for an answer. But he didn't get one.  
Instead, Alice darted off back toward the wood, past the border post, and she slipped behind one of the trees. Still curious, she peeked around the tree and saw that the boy had followed her. He had left his country and come into hers. What was he thinking?  
"Hey, why did you run? I won't hurt you." The boy said in a gentle voice. "You may be an Austrian…but you don't…seem like what Bruder has told me about them…" He muttered.  
Alice didn't seem to notice the things he said; just 'I won't hurt you'. It surprised her, to hear those words from a Prussian. Her father had told her not to trust them…but she felt she could trust this boy.

* * *

The two children sat together near the stream that Alice had come across, and learned from the boy, Ludwig was his name, that it did connect to the river that she saw while she was on the other side of the border. She learned that he was eleven, only a year older than her, and that he was the Prince of Prussia. She wanted to ask about the king, but at the same time, she felt that shouldn't, as if it would make her new friend uncomfortable.  
Alice suddenly looked behind her, as if she were worried someone was there.  
"What's the matter?" Ludwig asked, concerned.  
"Nothing…I thought I saw something."

If Alice didn't doubt herself at that moment, she would have known that she had seen a little fey called a will-o'-the-wisp. This one was unlike the common kind, instead of blue fire, his was red. The small fairy hid behind a tree when he made eye contact with the princess, and then looked back to see that she had resumed the conversation she was having with the Prussian prince. Worried, the red fairy beat his little wings as fast as he could, back to the palace, back to his friend.

* * *

Gilbert was worried. For the first time since his older brother had left for battle, he was worried. Where was Ludwig? He should have been back by now. He said that he wanted to take a walk, so he sent Lovino with him as an escort- was that a mistake? The young Austrian prince didn't seem very trustworthy…  
The albino king walked toward the door of his castle, and when he opened it, he looked back and said, "Elise, I'm going to go find Ludwig."  
Before the young blonde girl could even reply, Gilbert was already shutting the door behind him.

* * *

"Ludwig, you're a really nice person," Alice said to her new friend. She was speaking the truth; this boy was nothing like the people that her father had taught her about. Since he was the prince, that meant he was related to Gilbert, the king. Was Gilbert like how her father described him? Or was it his own personal hate for the Prussian ruler that made him say such horrible things about him? She remembered her mother telling her a story once, of how when they were her age, her mother, father, and Gilbert were all close friends. Alice wondered what happened.  
"Danke, Alice. You are very nice as well." Ludwig, too, was surprised at how different Alice was compared to what he was taught. Much like Alice, he was taught that the people of Austria were heartless, cruel people. This girl was nothing of the sort. He could sense that she was a warm, kind soul. Lovino was lucky, to have a sister like her.  
A sudden look of sadness overtook the princess's features. Her eyes got darker, and a frown overthrew her smile. Worry immediately entered Ludwig's system.  
"What's wrong? Why do you look so sad all of a sudden?"  
Alice appreciated the fact that he was worried about her. "Nothing…"  
"No, there's something. You can tell me."  
"…well…my brother, Lovino, ran away about a week ago. He wanted me to go with him…but I said no. Now I'm afraid I'll never see him again."  
Ludwig wanted to tell her that her brother was safe and sound. He wanted to, he really did, but…he didn't want to. Lovino didn't want to go back to his former life. If he told Alice where her brother was, she would tell Roderich. And if she told the king, he would probably send someone to retrieve the prince. He felt like…he couldn't put Lovino through that. He ran away for a reason, right? Besides, this could be a chance for them to become friends like he hoped. Maybe if he told Lovino about this encounter later, just maybe, he might want to be friends with him. Ludwig didn't find it fair that he judge him before he even got to know him.  
He was so caught up in his thoughts that he didn't notice a bird chirping and then flying away.

* * *

The red will-o'-the-wisp flew through the halls through the halls of the palace, looking for the blonde hair of his friend. He called his name, hoping he would hear, but his voice was so tiny he doubted it.  
"Drake, is that you?" Arthur called from the end of the hall. The small fey turned and saw his friend, and flew over to him, overjoyed. The blonde officer held his hand out for his fairy friend, to which he sat in, grateful and exhausted from all the flying he did.  
"Arthur, I found her…I thought for a second she saw me…but I found her."

* * *

"Gilbird, did you find him?" Gilbert said as he held out his finger for a small yellow bird to perch on. The bird somehow was able to understand him, and the king somehow knew that he had found him. "Awesome. Lead the way."

* * *

The two children continued to talk without a care in the world, finding common interests and having friendly debates. Hearing crackling in the wood behind her, Alice turned around, thinking she was hearing things again.  
"Princess Alice!" Arthur's shrill voice called, startling the girl and her companion. She looked behind her again to see the blonde riding his horse, a red bay he called Benjamin, and was riding toward the enclosed space where the children sat. He was being followed by a group of four others, all on horseback; her father, her mother, Antonio, and Emilio. Even from where they sat she could see the anger in her father's eyes. Chills of fear suddenly ran through her.  
Both the heirs stood up quickly, Alice looking more scared then Ludwig. The princess turned back to face her companion, mouthing the word 'run'. Ludwig nodded, taking her advice, as he started to slowly back up.  
"I wouldn't move." The frightening voice of Emilio said as he jumped off his horse, followed by Roderich, Antonio, and Arthur. Elizaveta was the only one who didn't move. Alice could tell by her eyes that she seemed disappointed, but she was still happy that her daughter was safe. To the princess's horror, Emilio had a gun aimed at Ludwig.  
The Prussian prince must have never had a gun pointed at him, as his blue eyes went wide and stopped still in his tracks. As did Alice, scared that her friend would get hurt. But she seemed to be more scared of the soldier that held the gun. She ran over to her father and hid behind him, hoping that she would be protected, and then felt like a bad friend for leaving him alone like that.  
"If you know what is good for you, Commander Emilio," came a slithering voice from the shadows that soon revealed its owner as Gilbert, who must have been hiding in the trees the whole time. He walked over to Ludwig, standing in front of him, a protective fire burning in his red eyes. "You will turn that weapon away from mein kleinen Bruder."  
The king was alone. He had brought no soldiers to back him up. He must have been confident. This was the first time that Alice had ever seen the Prussian king, and he was just as scary as she imagined. He looked like he could kill her with only those intense eyes as a weapon.  
It was those intense eyes that made Emilio drop the gun. He was clearly afraid. And it was those eyes that made the princess realize how serious the situation had become. The kings (one of which brought officers, and his queen) and heirs of two nations that despised each other were in a small, enclosed space…  
…What's the worst that could happen?  
Gilbert grinned as he won another victory thanks to his eyes. Sighing, he shut those eyes, thankful that his brother was safe. And when he opened them, the two kings made eye contact.  
Red met violet. The air suddenly became tense and awkward. One would easily be able to feel the intensity of the hate that the two men felt for each other.  
"Gilbert." Roderich said, as if he were acknowledging his enemy.  
"Roderich."  
Gilbert then met the bright green eyes of Elizaveta. When he said her name, no one but Alice seemed to notice that the fire in his eyes had become warmer somehow, like a candle, or the fact that his voice sounded longing. Her mother didn't even acknowledge him, instead choosing to turn away and huff.  
"Si," Antonio suddenly said, perhaps trying to break the tense air. "I'm Antonio, and this is Emilio. Now that we're all introduced…why don't you get off our land?" He said loudly, borderline shouting, which made Alice shiver. Antonio was scary when he was mad.  
"_Your _land?" Gilbert countered, staring the military commander in the eye, causing him to yelp and hide behind his brother, who rolled his eyes and sighed. Then, facing Roderich, he said: "You know this land was claimed by Heinrich." His voice was tense, and full of rage.  
"You lose land when you lose war," Roderich spat back, minding Alice, who was still shivering in fear. A quick look into Ludwig's eyes from where he stood behind his brother told the princess that he felt the same emotion. "Now you and your brother. Get. Out."  
"Hm, what a harsh way to treat a prince who will bring your downfall. And after all we've been through, you aristocrat."  
"Get out now or I will enforce the law." His teeth grit as he tried to contain his anger.  
"Would you dare take a young boy prisoner?" Gilbert taunted, testing his rival's limits. He pushed Ludwig out from behind him, out in the middle of the small crowd of seven. "Then go ahead."  
At this point Elizaveta looked back at Gilbert, disbelief written all over her face. She had to give him props for being so confident…but it wasn't right. She knew that he wouldn't really let anything happen to his brother.  
He was taunting him. Roderich knew this was what the albino wanted. His eyes did all the talking. 'Are you a king or a coward?' they said. The Austrian king sighed and turned, picking up his daughter.  
"Just get out. We are finished here." As he spoke, he placed Alice on Arthur's red bay horse, the frightened red head looping her arms around the blonde's waist quickly. In response, the cavalry officer placed his hand on the small hand of the princess, trying to offer some support.  
Gilbert said nothing else. He stood there as he watched them all ride off. His signature snake smirk took over his visage again. 'There you are wrong, aristocrat. It has only just begun.'  
"Ludwig, come." He called to his little brother, who wasn't very afraid anymore, even though he was close to having a heart attack because his brother threatened the Austrian king like that. He knew that was what he wanted though. The blonde prince only nodded and walked over to stand by his older brother, and as they started to walk back toward their castle, his mind wandered to his new friend, the princess.  
They didn't even get to say goodbye.

* * *

The palace was within sight as the group exited the massive forest. Roderich steered his white stallion up to Arthur's own horse, and dismounted next to him, getting the attention of everyone.  
"Arthur, take Alexander back to the stables." He said as he picked Alice up and set her down next to him, the child herself becoming confused. Arthur didn't ask questions, only took the white horse's reins from his king and followed his orders.  
The rest of the troop followed, but Elizaveta stayed behind. She looked at her husband, she being equally as confused as her daughter. "Roderich?" She asked.  
The king only gave her a look, hoping she would understand that he wanted to speak to Alice alone. Much to his joy, Elizaveta nodded, understanding, before she directed her mare to follow the rest of the group.  
Once they were out of sight, Roderich turned to Alice. The princess met his eyes, a bit scared that he would yell at her.  
Instead, his voice was calm, but it was still solemn. "Come, Alice, let's talk a walk."

* * *

Once they were a suitable distance from the palace, but nowhere near the forest, instead in a small field, Roderich cleared his throat and Alice prepared for the worst.  
"Alice, what were you thinking? You could have been killed today," he said, genuine concern written all over his face and laced in his voice.  
"Father, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"  
"I'm only telling you this because I love you. I don't want to lose you. I can't lose you too. If that happened I don't know what I would do…" The king said, his violet eyes taking on a gentle hue.  
"I know…" Alice said, not quite sure what else to say. She was truly sorry for disobeying her father.  
The conversation suddenly took on a more serious tone. "One day I won't be here to help you…and you need to be careful. As future Queen-"  
It was the princess's turn to interrupt. "What if I don't want to be Queen? It's no fun," she said, huffing.  
Roderich's only response was a small laugh. "That's like saying you don't want to be a princess, or a royal, or an Edelstein. Our family has ruled this kingdom for generations…it's in your blood," he explained. "As I am. We are all connected by our blood, and we are all part of each other."  
This confused the girl. "Then what about Arthur? And Antonio? They're not royals. They don't share our blood."  
He smiled again at his daughter's curiosity. "Sometimes blood doesn't matter. Arthur is like a brother to me as we grew up together, and with Antonio it is the same."  
"Okay…I kinda get it now…"  
"Good," he said, rubbing her head in a playful gesture. "As long as you live here…it's who you are. You'll understand someday."

* * *

Lovino walked through the courtyard of the Prussian castle, muttering to himself and kicking at the ground. "Ludwig, Ludwig, Ludwig…why is everything about that kid?" He said to no one in particular.  
The young blonde girl that Gilbert had spoken to before was there, tending to her small garden of flowers. She looked up at the prince, curious. She had heard things about him. He had run away from Austria, and King Gilbert just…took him in. It was also painfully obvious to the girl that the boy did not like the Prince Ludwig, not one bit. Finished with her work, she strolled over to him.  
"He's the prince. Everything is supposed to be about him," she said. The girl was younger then Lovino, maybe even younger then Alice, and yet she sounded more mature then either of the heirs.  
Lovino noticed her, and looked at her, noticing her green eyes that were so similar to his own. He only raised a brow and scowled. "Who are you to answer for me?"  
The girl was surprised at his answer. He talked as if he ruled this place! "I'm Elise. Do you remember that soldier Francis that was in the Austro-Prussian War? My brother is the one who died fighting him."  
_Ouch_. Suddenly Lovino felt sorry for snapping at her like that. She was alone, and no thanks to that stupid Frenchman, who the prince had never taken a liking to (he seemed to do that with a lot of people). He wondered why she was here in the castle. Did she have some special relationship with Gilbert or Ludwig or whoever?  
"Oh…wow now I feel like an ass. I'm sorry. My name is Lovino," he said, earnest in his apology.  
The girl didn't even seem to mind. "It's okay, I forgive you." She paused for a moment, and looked at Lovino closer, much like Gilbert did only a few days ago. She stared into his eyes, like she was looking for something, like the king had. "King Gilbert took me in when Vash died."  
He wasn't even going to ask how she could figure that out. Was everyone in this place super freaks that had strange powers? Ludwig's power must have been looking weak.  
"Where is the prince?" Elise asked suddenly.  
"Who knows," Lovino said, shrugging. "The albino sent me out with him. He wandered off, so I guess I'm too much for the runt to handle."  
"King Gilbert won't be too happy about that."  
"Yeah, well, I don't really care. I appreciate how the guy is letting me stay here, but I couldn't care less what he thinks about me."  
Elise's green eyes glittered with curiosity. "Not even a little?"  
Lovino shrugged again.

The sounds of approaching footsteps brought the two of them out of their conversation, as they saw Gilbert and Ludwig enter the courtyard and approach them.  
There was some intense fire in Gilbert's red eyes that sent a shiver down Lovino's spine. For once since he came here, he actually looked afraid.  
"Lovino, weren't you supposed to be watching him?" He snapped at the Austrian prince, who cowered away from him, frightened as a rabbit.  
"Bruder, it's not his fault!" Ludwig spoke up, trying to protect him.  
Gilbert turned toward his brother, causing a shudder of fear to go through the boy's body. His eyes were full of malice. "What about you?" He demanded. "Must I remind you of everything?! Tell me, kleinen Bruder, who reduced out kingdom to petty rubble?"  
"Roderich," Ludwig answered, shaking in his shoes. He had never been this afraid of anyone before, much less his big brother, who he always felt safe around.  
"Who killed Heinrich?"  
"Roderich!"  
"What have I told you, again and again, about _them_?"  
The blonde prince shivered, not noticing the worried face of Elise and the somewhat triumphant grin that Lovino wore. "I'm sorry Bruder…" He said. "She didn't seem that bad…I thought we could be-"  
"Friends?!" Gilbert shouted. "You thought you could get to his daughter, and then Roderich would accept you with open arms? What an idea…" Suddenly a thought came upon the Prussian king. His red eyes widened slightly as he thought, this could work! When he looked at Ludwig again, the child was confused as he noticed Gilbert's eyes had seemed calmer, happy even. His snake-like smile appeared again. The prince thought back to when he was reading a quote that Queen Elizaveta of Austria said, _'He has an angel's face, marred only by a devil's_ _smile.'_, and thought that it was perfect for this situation.  
"What a clever boy you are," the albino king said happily, ruffling his brother's blonde hair. The boy smiled weakly, hoping the scary episode was over. "You have the same brilliant mind your brother had…" Then noticing the setting sun, he told the boy that it was past his curfew (Elise too) and he led both of the children into the castle.

And as the two brothers and that strange girl walked into the castle, a deep frown came across Lovino's face. He just didn't understand why Ludwig was so weak. He submitted to his brother without a question…  
"Pfft…important prince my ass…"

* * *

"Guten Nacht…" Ludwig said sleepily as he yawned, pulling the blankets over his body and settling in the bed.  
"Guten Nacht mein kleiner Prinz," the Prussian king said as he shut the door, leaving it open only a smidge.

"Tomorrow your training really begins…"

* * *

**New characters~**

**Elise: Vitani (Liechtenstein)  
Elizaveta: Nala  
Emilio: Timon (Portugal)**

**Whoa they all start with 'e'. That's pretty awesome.**

**I know you all want Gilbert to sing. But you have to be nice and then he will sing.**

**Translations:  
_German:_  
Guten Nacht- Good night**  
**Guten Nacht mein kleiner Prinz- Good night my little prince**  
**Bruder- Brother**

**That line there. Guten Nacht mein kleiner Prinz. I got that from the German version of My Lullaby. Which, by the way, is very amazing and you should all go and watch/listen to/whatever it. It's my second favorite version, next to Russian. I swear that song was made for Russian.**


	3. Special: Gilbert's Lullaby

**Finally got around to writing this. I don't know what I was on when I wrote this. Blame Breaking Benjamin. Anyway, this whole little chapter special thing is based on My Lullaby. Good song. I swear it was like made for Russian or something.**

* * *

Gilbert's Lullaby

_"Guten Nacht…" Ludwig said sleepily as he yawned, pulling the blankets over his body and settling in the bed._  
_"Guten Nacht mein kleiner Prinz," the Prussian king said as he shut the door, leaving it open only a smidge._

_"Tomorrow your training really begins…"_

* * *

"What's going on?" Lovino asked, seeing the albino walking into the room that he and Elise (who was due to go to bed as well, but Gilbert didn't send her) were in. Gilbert carried a confident air around him as usual, a slight rhythm in his steps. His question wasn't really directed at anyone, but out his peripheral, he saw Elise shrug in response.  
"Tell me something, Lovino." Gilbert suddenly said, easily gaining attention. "How do you take over a kingdom?"  
"Brute force, I would think," the Austrian prince replied. "Maybe an infiltration, like an inside job."

That snake smile that the king seemed to be so famous for appeared on his face. He silently moved back down toward the door that led to Ludwig's bedroom, and it may have just been a trick of the eyes…but Lovino could've sworn that snake's grin grew into one a devil would wear. What was he planning, exactly? The prince didn't bother to listen to his plans when he was scolding his brother earlier in the day.  
"Exactly."

A strange air filled the room, one that made Lovino weary. It didn't seem to do anything to Elise; it was as if the young girl was used to the feeling. Gilbert did not say another word, he merely turned, and slicked down the halls. The two heirs (Lovino could assume that Elise was an heir, since Gilbert took her in) followed him, curious.

They found the king in what appeared to be a library. He had a book open, and was skimming over a page. However, by his eyes, it seemed that he had already had whatever it was memorized to the heart. Still, his eyes scanned over the pages, and a strange thing then began to happen. The king started to hum.  
"I've been exiled…persecuted…that's not very awesome…" Gilbert whispered quietly in that humming voice, as if he were singing. This caused the two children to become even more curious. What was he doing? Why would he be singing? Out of nowhere it seemed, the albino pulled a small dagger out (presumably from an inner pocket of some sort) and his arm suddenly tensed. Was he about to use that dagger for something? Lovino noticed that his red eyes had taken on a glow that seemed to radiate hate and malice. "When I think of what he once did…" His arm raised, in a stabbing motion. "Red is all I see!" Gilbert then stabbed the dagger into the wood desk that the book rested on, obviously frustrated. His anger seemed to calm then, and he eyed the book one last time before moving on, that humming still erupting from his throat.  
Lovino, followed by Elise, cautiously made their way over to the book, as if the book would somehow come to life and attack them or something of that nature. There was no surprise to find out what particular page the book was turned to; it was a page that held a detailed report of the Kingdom of Austria's victory in the Austro-Prussian War. It also had a picture of King Roderich on it.  
No mind was paid as they continued to follow the Prussian king throughout the library.

"At night I dream such dreams…" Gilbert sang, flowing his fingers over rows of books that were waiting to be pulled from their shelves. "All the pain goes away…" Pain? "It soothes me to the core…and I can finally get some rest." He finished the short verse, as a small little smile that seemed happy came across his face.  
"The sound of Roderich's dying gasp!" He exclaimed, making a gesture with his hands as if he were strangling someone. "Little Alice squealing in my grasp…" Wait. What? What was that? Lovino was sure he heard that right. What did Alice have to do with anything? He would have to question him later. "Elizaveta's mournful cry…" Was Lovino the only one who seemed to understand what was going on? It seemed like the Prussian king was somehow explaining his plan through this strange song. Elise didn't seem to catch on as fast as the prince had; he could tell by her still confused face. "What an awesome lullaby!" He finished, his voice booming with pure delight. He seemed to be happy.

Moving as quick as the snakes that he resembled, Gilbert was then at the other side of the library, leafing through books, until he found the one that he wanted. He pulled that book out, opening it to a specific page, and then he moved his finger down the page, as if he had been reading this book before and he was trying to find where he left off.  
"Now of course, I've tried forgetting. I suppose, I could move on…" He hummed, stopping his finger, like he found his place. "There's just one small problem…" At this line, Gilbert's muscles tensed again, and he seemed to lose all interest in the book as he looked back at the shelves, mimicking someone who picked the wrong book. But Lovino was sure he had no real interest in the book in the first place. "He's done what I can't forgive!" He exclaimed, slamming the book shut and putting it back on the shelf, rather aggressively.

And it was at that moment that Lovino thought of the perfect question to ask him. "So you finally found some sucker to hit Roderich where it hurts?" Much to the young prince's dismay, the way he said those words went along perfectly with whatever song the king was singing.

Both of the other occupants of the library stared at the prince with surprise, especially Gilbert. He wasn't expecting him to say anything. Still, the king seemed happy, for that smile was on his face once again. Not the snake one, the one that made him look like a normal human being for once, and not a devil in disguise. He looked back to the book shelf, still wearing the façade that he was actually looking for something.  
"The battle will be bloody…which sounds pretty awesome to me!"

And then he was all over the library, walking as he sang, that rhythm still in his steps. "Serenades of angry screams…chorused by painful cries…" Now that Lovino took more notice, Gilbert did seem to be looking for something, as he was constantly scanning the walls. Although that was a naïve thought; this was his library, he surely knew where everything was. "Death all about…look now! What an awesome lullaby!"

Gilbert stopped in front of a portrait that hung on the wall. The person depicted in the painting looked like an older version of Ludwig, but Lovino knew from all the history lessons that it was a painting of King Heinrich II. Gilbert and Ludwig's older brother. The albino king placed his hand on the painting, and if the Austrian prince was correct, a look of sadness came upon his eyes. Why wouldn't it? This was his brother. Lovino was sure he had fond memories of him. In a way, he could relate to the king. He would be horribly sad if anything happened to Alice.  
"Heinrich's gone…but Gilbert's right here…" These words were muffled, and by his voice it sounded like he was about to choke. Was he holding back tears? Gilbert looked down, away from the painting, as if he couldn't handle looking at it any longer. He turned away completely then, and his eyes…Lovino couldn't help but feel sorry for the Prussian king at that moment. His eyes were glassy and watery. He did truly look like he was about to cry. Gilbert didn't seem to care. "To love what you left behind…until he ends up just like you…" All sorrow fled from his voice, replaced by pure malice. Elise wasn't surprised by this sudden display of mood swings. Lovino had to wonder if Gilbert sang and almost cried on a daily basis.

"A killer like you planned!"

Was that truly what Heinrich wanted for his youngest brother, though? Lovino knew he probably shouldn't have been putting so much thought into it, but he still had to wonder. What was the former king really like? Was he like the history books said? The books never said anything about Gilbert even being able to feel any emotion other then hate.  
Thoughts of Ludwig, the youngest sibling in this family, found their way into Lovino's mind. No, he wanted to wonder what Heinrich was like, not his stupid little brother. He already knew what the prince was like.  
"Stupido little runt…" Lovino said quietly, hoping no one heard. When he felt Gilbert's intense red eyes on him, all those hopes went away. He was afraid to look up and meet his gaze, so to try and appease him, he said, "Ahaha…I mean, precious little prince…"  
That seemed to do the trick.  
And then a new voice joined in this strange little serenade. "One day he'll be big and strong…" It was Elise. This was the first time she had spoken the entire time.  
"He will be a king!" Gilbert finished for her. He knew the girl was shy, and she didn't like to be in the spotlight.

"Sound the drums, start the war!" Gilbert sang with a new found aura of some sort. "Ludwig's war cry is all they'll hear!"

"Revenge is mine!" What was this? Was Lovino actually getting into this?  
"Sparks will fly!" Elise added in. Perhaps she meant the sparks that metal makes. Either way, both the king and the prince had to give her props.

"The cheers ring in my ears!"

"Ludwig, what a guy!" Both of them said, although Lovino had said it more dull, in a bored sort of voice.

"It's our time to shine! And then the eagle flies!" Gilbert sang, seeming to be nearing the end of his song. He moved toward the Prussian flag in the corner of the library. Lovino assumed that was what he meant by an eagle flying. The flag sported a large black eagle. "He claims the blood red sky!"

"What an awesome lullaby!"


	4. III Entering the Bloodstream

**Updated: 12-11**

**Hello fellow fanfictioners. Chapter three at your service.**

* * *

III. Entering the Bloodstream

Throughout the course of seven years, many things changed. Alice, finally able to convince her father that she could in fact do things just as well as a man, started taking swordsmanship lessons, with Antonio being her teacher.

* * *

Gilbert, on the other hand, was constantly busy, grooming his brother and filling his heart with lies intent to kill. He would have his revenge. He would see Roderich die.  
Lovino continued to live in the Prussian castle. Over the years Gilbert had been snapping at him more, and so he constantly tried to prove that he didn't deserve it. None of his attempts worked; the king was always more interested in preparing Ludwig for what was to come instead of what the "spawn of that damned aristocrat" had to say.

* * *

On the outskirts of the Kingdom of Austria, there was a small cottage. If one was to enter that cottage, they would be embraced with a mixture of the sweet scents of incense and herbal tea. They would see the paintings hung up on the walls; from beautiful flowers to glorious dragons.  
In that house lived a man. A man one might call a shaman. Shaman, he was not; in his eyes the man only saw himself as worldly and observant. He didn't care what others thought of him.  
The man himself was of simple looks; dark brown hair he kept tied back, and eyes of the same color but of a lighter hue. This man held a paintbrush, making gentle brushstrokes over a canvas with blue paint to create a flowing effect on the princess's gown. A blank figure stood next to her (he wasn't colored yet), and this figure wore an extravagant suit. The man planned on painting it red and white, the exact opposite of the blue and white the princess wore.  
"Augustus, if you could only see her now," he said, adding more of the flowing wave-like motions to the gown. "Alice grows more beautiful with each passing day." Now finished with the painting of the princess, he moved onto to the figure next to her. Picking up another brush, he colored the boy's blonde hair, his blue eyes, and he soon moved up to the suit, using the same wave-like motions he did with the gown. "She will be a fine queen that will make us all proud." The brush seemed to move on its own as the man spoke, a somewhat cautious tone filling it as he spoke again, "But there is this other heir…the Prince of Prussia, Ludwig…days pass and he grows stronger…as Gilbert fills his heart with hate…it worries me, Augustus."  
A sharp dinging noise came into the room, alerting the man that his tea was ready. Placing the brush down gently, he went into the kitchen area. However, when the tea was poured, something in him caused the dark-haired man to drop the cup.  
"Aiyah…what is wrong with me today?" He said, grabbing a towel, kneeling down to clean the mess. Once all the tea was dried up, he started to pick up the broken shards of the cup. It was then that he noticed that two pieces made a perfect fit, as if they were a puzzle. Like they were made for each other.  
"Wait a moment…" He said, a thought coming to him. Standing, he held the two pieces up so that he could see the painting behind them. "Alice…Ludwig…together…?" He muttered as he put the two pieces that were made for each other together again.

* * *

"You are ready."  
Ludwig, standing still as a tree, blinked his piercing blue eyes as his brother (who he was taller than at this point) circled him, as if he were an animal that was being hunted.  
Looking into his brother's eyes, Gilbert noted, "Heinrich would be proud. You're a splitting image of him…I can see the same blackness in your soul as there was in his…" He finished, nodding. Ludwig gave his own nod, in an agreement of some sort. He was able to read eyes so easily, he noted, while the blonde prince himself had yet to master that useful skill. They say that eyes are the windows to our souls; in this case, he had to agree.  
Gilbert chuckled darkly, and then the questions that he had been trained to answer began. "What is your purpose?"  
The answer came just as quickly. "I will take Heinrich's place. Avenge him."  
"Good! What have I taught you?"  
"Roderich is the enemy."  
There was some sort of glitter in the albino king's eyes; it was almost like a glimmer of joy. "And what must you do?"  
"I must kill him."

As Gilbert and his high commanders (that albino general Emil and one that was unrecognizable; he had crazy blonde hair that stuck up in all directions) spoke with Ludwig, making final preparations, Lovino skirted around the corner, waiting for the king to leave so he could speak with him.

At last the time came. The generals left first, then Ludwig (Lovino shot a glare in his direction, but he didn't seem to notice. Then again the Austrian prince had to remember that he was groomed and pampered to be emotionless. Like a perfect soldier.), and finally, the albino made his appearance.  
He was the only one who even looked in his direction. "Lovino," he said, nodding in acknowledgement. The two of them weren't on the…best terms.  
Lovino did not return the nod; he only stared at the king with that same scowl on his face. He had to choose his words carefully, because he remembered that he was only allowed to live here because he was the Austrian prince; by living here it was making his father more vulnerable in a way. When the final battle came, the king would have to fight his own son. What father could do that?  
After what seemed like centuries, Gilbert raised an eyebrow, beckoning Lovino to speak. A few more centuries later, "If Alice gets hurt the deal is off."  
The Prussian king only smiled that snake smile of his. "I assure you, she will be fine, he said, bowing slightly with a hand over his heart, as if he were making a promise.  
Lovino had no choice but to believe him.

* * *

It was a custom in Austria to test a swordfighters abilities at the end of their learning. This test involved the swordfighter engaged in a match with their teacher as their enemy. It was like a final exam of sorts; if they could defeat their teacher then they were officially known as a swordsman.  
And so would be the same for Alice.

"Alice…you don't have to do this," Roderich said, his voice full of worry. Even if Antonio was a good friend of his, he was still worried that his daughter would get hurt in some way.  
"I want to!" The princess replied eagerly as she fidgeted in the chain mail she was required to wear. She was clearly excited.  
"Just be careful."  
"Roderich, don't worry. She'll be fine!" Elizaveta chimed. She was proud that her daughter had chosen to become a swordswoman, just as she did when she her age. Alice had her mother's wild blood flowing through her veins, which gave her some kind of advantage…but then again, Antonio was a military commander, and he had much more experience…  
Despite all this, Alice stayed positive.

Antonio stood on the other side of the small field with his brother. He adjusted his own chain mail and looked at the princess from across the area. He gave her a reassuring smile. Emilio rolled his eyes. He knew that his brother would go easy on her. He always does, with all his students. If he were her teacher, he would have pushed her until her bones cracked. But the princess didn't choose ranged combat, she chose sword fighting.

The two of them met in the middle of the field.  
"Don't hold back, okay, Toni?" Alice said, using the affectionate nickname she had used since she was child.  
Antonio laughed somewhat modestly, commenting how he wouldn't as long as she didn't.

The sparring match ended quickly. The metal of the swords made chiming noises as they connected, bring about a sort of serenade. Roderich almost had a heart attack once or twice during the match, only to be reassured by Elizaveta and Arthur (who had just arrived from feeding the horses).

Alice fell to the ground, her sword a yard or so away from her. She thought she could retrieve it like she had before, but Antonio was faster, pointing his sword toward her throat, even though he wasn't trying to cause any harm.  
"Chica, it's over," he said. "A good soldier knows when to acknowledge defeat." Holding his hand out, Alice took it, standing up.  
To say that she was ashamed would be an understatement. Alice was embarrassed that she lost; she was ashamed that now she wouldn't become a full-fledged swordfighter. Had all the training been for nothing?  
As if reading her thoughts, Antonio placed his hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort her. "It's okay. Lots of soldiers fail on the first try. Emilio actually did, if you can believe it!"  
"Don't tell her that!" Emilio shouted from the sidelines. A chorus of small laughs came out from the royals (and cavalry officer) that were in the group with him. Exactly his point! Why do a silly test for sword fighting when you could just be trained to fight with a gun?  
"The point that I'm saying is that you can't give up. All you can do is train and get better, and when you're ready, you can try again."

Seeking a solace of some sort, Alice had taken Benjamin (with Roderich's permission of course; Arthur's as well, seeing as how it was his horse) out to get some air. It felt strange riding normally after she was used to riding sidesaddle for so long. But then again she couldn't complain. Riding sidesaddle wasn't very comfortable.  
Alice had dismounted the red bay horse and was sitting on a boulder near a river as the horse grazed nearby. She still wore the chain mail, as she didn't bother to take it off, and she had her sword with her, because, you never know when something will happen. At least at this point people would know that she could defend herself to some degree.  
She skipped stones in the river, smiling whenever one of the stones would mark a new record. Benjamin, finished with his grazing apparently, had trotted his way over to the princess and nudged her shoulder with his muzzle. The horse could tell something was wrong. He could remember days of when the princess was a child. The princess pets his muzzle, a small smile appearing on her face.  
Alice watched the animals in the fields across the river, each going on with their daily lives. She saw a small pack of four gray wolves, and even though she should have been afraid of them, she wasn't. She knew they wouldn't hurt her unless they felt threatened.  
The small pack was made of two adults and two pups, and the largest of them all, presumably the male alpha, looked toward Alice, caution in his yellow eyes.  
Deciding that nothing bad would come out of the girl, he raised his muzzle toward the east, and he and his family soon made their way in that direction.  
She smiled again. She always loved to see life out here, just…flowing.

* * *

Lovino mumbled to himself as he walked through the basement of the Prussian castle, carrying a torch.  
"Are you mumbling to yourself again?" Elise asked from next to him. She too carried a torch. "Still worried your sister will get hurt? She'll be fine."  
The Austrian prince shrugged. He wasn't fully convinced. Even after seven years, he would never get rid of that small ounce of doubt.  
The two of them soon found what they were looking for: the furnace. Lovino left his torch in there for only a minute or so, but it was enough to achieve a flame.  
"Why is it that we have to do this anyway?" Lovino asked, bringing his torch closer to his face so he could observe the growing fire. He then held it out to Elise's torch so hers could be lit as well. "You'd think if Ludwig was so special he wouldn't need us to do this for him."  
Elise rolled her eyes in amusement. "Without us, the whole plan would collapse."  
Lovino shrugged once again.  
"Now come on. Alice is outside the palace grounds; we have to move quickly."

The two heirs were a long ways away from where Alice sat with the red bay horse, but they could still see her.  
Lovino shifted his weight on his feet nervously. What if something went wrong? What if Alice got hurt? What would he do? Looking to the side, he noticed that Elise had already thrown her flaming torch out into the field, and the fire was spreading at a rapid rate.  
Shaking his head, he threw the torch that he held as well, adding more fuel to the growing fire; the fire itself spreading rapidly across the fields. He suddenly thought of how sad Alice would be. She loved these fields.

* * *

Benjamin's ears wiggled; the red bay horse nudged his muzzle into Alice's shoulder, almost pushing her off the boulder.  
"Benjamin, what's wrong?" She asked him in a gentle voice, trying to calm him down. The horse wouldn't listen, and he continued to nudge the girl, his body language becoming more and more frantic.  
Something caught her eye, and Alice looked across the river to see herds of animals running; running from what she couldn't fathom. She looked up the hill, squinting in an attempt to enhance her vision, and soon her brown eyes widened in horror.  
There was a fire up there. A rapidly spreading fire.  
She mounted Benjamin as quickly as she could, and soon enough the horse took off in the direction of the palace.

Benjamin struggled to get through the fire; his own fear consuming him even though he was trained to be a war horse that could go through anything and make it out alive. Fire was a different story…  
Still, his trainer had trusted him to keep the princess safe, and he would do the best he could.  
Alice's eyes were wide with fear as she looked for a way to escape the consuming flames. She covered her mouth, trying to keep smoke out.

* * *

From the top of high cliff, two black horses stood still side by side; their riders the king and prince of Prussia themselves.  
"The plan is in motion…" Gilbert mused. "Go!"  
Ludwig snapped the reigns of his horse, and the creature was soon making its way down the cliff.  
The snake smiled once again. He knew this would be much too easy.

* * *

It was too much. Benjamin was able to stay awake; Alice on the other hand…was not. She struggled to keep her eyes open, and her body grew limper with each passing second.  
Finally, the princess gave in. She fell off of Benjamin's saddle, and onto the cold ground. The horse, noticing that his rider was not accounted for, stopped running and if he was able to, he would've screamed.

* * *

It was ridiculously easy to find the princess. She lay on the ground in a collapsed heap, the smoke from the fire being too much for her frail body to handle. Ludwig halted his black horse, jumping off within seconds and making his way toward her unconscious body. The red bay horse that she was with snorted, digging his hooves into the dirt, he himself moving in front of her body. The horse was obviously trying to protect her.  
"I'm trying to help her," Ludwig said, trying to make the horse back off, but he wasn't hearing any of it. He snorted again.  
The blonde Prussian rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Look, if we wait here, we'll all die. How about you make yourself useful and go back to the palace and get some help?" To his surprise, the horse seemed to calm down, and he seemed to be thinking about what the prince had said. Eventually, the red bay ran off into the distance. Ludwig was surprised he actually understood him…  
Now able to get close to Alice's body; he kneeled down and checked her pulse. It was weak, but it was still there. There was still a chance that she could survive.  
He hitched her body on his shoulder and managed to get her onto his black horse's saddle. She would be in the front. Ludwig then got on the horse himself, and with a snap of the reigns, they were off.

* * *

Roderich paced back and forth nervously. It had been a while since Alice left, and there was no sign of her…what if something happened?  
"Roderich, I'm sure she's fine. Think about it, what's the worst that could happen?" Arthur said in a reassuring tone.  
The two of them were outside the palace gates, waiting for Alice to return. When she hadn't things got a bit…unsettling.  
The whinny of a horse drew the two men out of their separate thoughts, and turned their heads toward the red bay horse known as Benjamin.  
"…Benjamin, what…where's Alice?" Arthur cooed softly. The horse was clearly upset about something.  
Roderich's violet eyes were wide with fear. "No…"  
"What is it…?"  
There was smoke brewing on the horizon. Which could only mean fire.  
"Arthur, ride ahead, find her!" Roderich shouted, heading back through the gate, straight for the stables.

* * *

Ludwig's blue eyes searched through the flames, looking for a way out. He tried directing his horse the best he could, but the horse, in the end, was still a horse, and he could tell that his fear was overtaking him. He leaned over Alice's body, and whispered soothing words into the horse's ear in his mother tongue.  
From atop a cliff, Arthur could see that black horse. He could see Ludwig, and he could see Alice. His green eyes widened and he gasped slightly. He knew he probably didn't have to confront them; it looked like the young blonde (who looked achingly familiar to the cavalry officer…) had everything under control. Instead, he chose to turn around and lead his king to him.

Alice coughed away the excess smoke in her lungs, her brown eyes opening. "Where…where am I…?"  
"You're safe," Ludwig said, the blonde himself was kneeled down next to her. His black horse loomed nearby; it seemed worried about the princess in its own way.  
The princess in question stood up abruptly, meeting the blue eyes of her rescuer. "So you saved me…?"  
"Ja. I did." That voice…why was it so familiar? She knew that voice from somewhere, exactly where, she couldn't place. That sounded like German he had spoken…  
Her eyes widened with realization. "…Ludwig?"  
Ludwig smiled. She recognized him, good. So far everything was going according to the plan.

"Alice!" The girl turned toward the voice, and saw her father getting closer to her on the back of his white horse, Alexander. Her attention was then drawn by the sound of metal that one could only know as the unsheathing of a sword. It was Ludwig who drew the sword, to which Roderich met with his own sword (he had jumped off of Alexander and unsheathed his sword within seconds).  
Elizaveta was there, dismounting her own mare and making her way over to Alice quickly. She hugged her daughter, happy that she was safe.  
Roderich was threatening Ludwig with his eyes alone; the boy was a trespasser, and even though he didn't exactly know where he knew him from, he had the burning feeling that he couldn't be trusted.  
"This is Ludwig, isn't it?" He said angrily, lowering his sword a bit and facing Alice, who reluctantly nodded.  
"Hey, you!" A voice called from the outskirts of the area on which they stood. A man with a ponytail stood there, and his word seemed to be directed at Ludwig, who raised an eyebrow. "How dare you save the king's daughter!" He said, as if it were a bad thing. He seemed to appear out of thin air, and within seconds he was gone again.  
Roderich's violet eyes blinked in confusion. "Yao, what do you…?" He turned to Ludwig again. "You saved her? Why?"  
Ludwig stiffened; his horse came to stand by his side, as if he were preparing in case he needed to suddenly get away. "I…ask to join your kingdom."  
"No! You are a Prussian; you are not to be here!" The king was letting his anger get to him.  
"I've left them. I'm now a rogue, living on the streets. Judge me now, for my blood…or will you blame me for a crime I did not commit?"  
"Roderich…he saved Alice," Elizaveta said. "We owe him her life." Alice seemed to be too afraid of what would happen to speak for herself.  
"She's right, sir," Arthur said, walking up to his king, perhaps trying to offer condolence of some sort. "It seems we are in his debt. The law says that all debts must be paid…" The blonde cavalry officer paused, looking Ludwig in the eye, who was still stiff as a board. He seemed to have been trained as a good soldier… "Although in this case, you may want to make an exception," he spat.  
King Roderich paced back and forth again, his thoughts racing. After a few moments, he had come to a conclusion. "My father's law will prevail…for now," he said, moving back to his horse. Once mounted, he directed Alexander to move back to the palace. "We'll see who you really are."  
To say Alice was happy was an understatement. She sighed with obvious relief, and when Ludwig looked toward her, both she and her mother smiled.  
Arthur mounted Benjamin again, and followed his king, muttering under his breath.

* * *

"You will stay here," Emilio said as he stopped, motioning into the prison cell that Ludwig would be staying in. It was strange feeling for the Prussian prince, to be placed in a cell like a prisoner…although at this moment, to Roderich, he was one. He watched Emilio leave, and noticed that Alice was standing there. She was soon in front of his cell, and she kneeled down so she could be at eye level with him.  
"Hey, uh, thanks…for you know, saving my life," she said, trying not to stutter.  
Ludwig smiled softly as a way of saying 'you're welcome', but then his brother's voice was in his head, telling him that he needed to follow the plan. "Princess-?"  
"Alice is fine," she corrected.  
"Alright then, Alice…you are a swordfighter, correct?" He had noticed that there was a sword on her hip earlier, and she wore chainmail as well.  
The princess nodded. "Swordfighter in training. I haven't completed my assessment yet. Antonio won by a landslide," she said.  
"I could…give you lessons, if you want."  
"Lessons? So I could win? That'd be great! We can start at dawn, okay?" Alice said happily, before standing up. "Anyway I have to go now. Ciao~!" She walked away from his cell and jogged her way up the steps.  
Ludwig smiled to himself. It was all going according to plan.

* * *

"Those two look awfully chummy in there," Lovino noted, putting down the binoculars. "I swear, you albino, if she gets hurt, I'll-"  
Gilbert swiped the binoculars out of the Austrian's hands. "Shush!" He hissed. "The fire rescue worked perfectly. And now, the closer Ludwig gets to Alice…the closer he gets to Roderich!" The king picked up a twig that was lying on the ground atop the hill they sat on. "And once he gets Roderich alone…!" He snapped the twig in two with no effort whatsoever.

* * *

**I just realized this fic is about half way over. There'll only be like seven chapters all together. Not counting Gilbert's Lullaby and any other specials that I happen to write. I might do one for One of Us...**

**Yao: Rafiki (Because he's all mythical and Kung Fuey and yes I did just quote Kung Fu Panda at you. Honestly you should of seen it coming.)**


	5. IV Inflammation

**I wonder if anyone's noticed what I'm doing with the titles. One more chapter closer...this is a bit of a shorter chapter, but I'm trying to stay close to the movie.**

**THERE IS A POLL ON MY PROFILE CONCERNING WHAT IS TO COME AFTER THIS IS FINISHED. GO VOTE, POR FAVOR.**

* * *

IV: Inflammation

All Roderich needed was air. Yes, that's all, it would surely do the trick…

It may have been the storms that were rampant the entire night (and successful in the act of dowsing whatever specks of the fire were left), but the king hadn't had a very good night. He was constantly plagued by nightmares; of what, he couldn't remember. All he knew was that when he woke up, he was terrified.

He was right there. He was just sitting there, and like a fool he had come unarmed. His brother's voice rang in his ear again; Ludwig knew now was a perfect chance. Unsheathing his sword slowly as not to make even the slightest sound, he narrowed his blue eyes, focusing on the Austrian king who was foolish enough not to bring a weapon with him.  
Suddenly there was a slight force at Ludwig's back, along with a happy little voice chiming, "Gotcha~!"  
He was so focused that he didn't notice Alice sneaking up behind him. She scared him, nearly giving him a heart attack, as well as making him drop his sword, the metal clanking on the ground.  
The princess walked around and stood in front of him. "What's wrong? Did I scare you too hard?" Ludwig blinked, looking past her, only to find…Roderich was gone. He missed his chance.  
Alice poked her blonde friend. "Did you forget that you were going to give me sword fighting lessons?" She asked, her tone still happy and teasing, although Ludwig could tell that she was hiding hurt. It was evident in her eyes.  
He quickly shook his head. If Alice got hurt in any way, Lovino would surely have his head…besides, it would mess the entire plan up too. "Nein, you just scared me."

* * *

Alice felt the tip of the blade on the chainmail that covered her waist.  
"Dead," Ludwig commented. _  
_ Throat. "Still dead."  
Legs. "If this was real swordfight you would have been killed three times already."  
"What am I doing wrong?" Alice asked, a bit annoyed; seeing that no progress was being made, except for the fact that she was killed three times.  
Ludwig sighed, as if saying 'Where do I start?', but he instead said, "First off you're not relaxed. It's perfectly understandable to be tense during combat, but you must make every effort you can to stay calm. Panic leads to rash choices," he explained.  
Alice nodded. Antonio had given her basically the same lecture at one time, but she still couldn't get it right. "Okay, relax. Is there anything else?"  
"Your posture needs work. Going back to being relaxed, you need to keep your muscles relaxed so you can change position quickly if necessary. Agility is crucial."  
The princess tried relaxing her muscles in an effort to obtain a better starting position, but Ludwig sighed and shook his head slightly.  
"No, like this," he said, moving next to her and taking her arms gently so he could direct them into a more proper position that wouldn't strain her shoulder muscles. "Move your feet a bit closer."

"That's fine for a first day I suppose," Ludwig said in satisfaction. Alice had learned a lot, and her posture was better. With a few more days of training, she could pass her assessment.  
The princess sheathed her sword, obviously happy with what her efforts had given her.  
What sounded like a horse neighing brought the two heirs attention away from sword fighting and toward the sound. That horse didn't sound very happy.  
Looking at each other, they silently decided to go check it out and see what was going on.

Once they reached the top of the hill from where the neighs were coming from, Ludwig's blue eyes widened to find that it was his black horse that was making the ruckus. And who else but Antonio and Emilio would be there, trying to calm the creature?  
"What's Ludwig's horse doing here?" Alice asked, drawing the two military commanders' attention easily.  
"He got out," Antonio said simply.  
"I think she can tell," Emilio added in.  
Ludwig, who hadn't said anything, walked toward his horse. The black stallion saw him and it was an immediate reaction: upon seeing his trainer, he calmed down drastically. Like he had before during the fire, he said what seemed to be soothing words in German to the animal.  
Alice walked up next to him, looking the horse up and down in awe. "How long have you had him for?"  
"Since he was a colt," Ludwig said; his eyes focused on his horse, petting him gently to calm him further.  
"Well that escalated quickly," the younger of the two brothers said.  
"That was cool!" Antonio chimed happily, like a ray straight from the sun itself.  
The two heirs seemed to be ignoring the military commanders, and they seemed to be in their own little world: Alice, Ludwig, and the black horse.  
"What's his name?"  
"Blitz. It means 'lightning' in my language," the blonde Prussian explained.  
"Ooh, I just got an idea!" Antonio suddenly exclaimed, a light bulb going off in his head. "How about a race between horses? You two stay here and we'll go fetch our horses, and then we can race! Alice, I can get Benjamin for you, is that fine?"  
The princess eagerly nodded. A race sounded fun!

"We race to the palace," Emilio said in a monotone sort of voice, although he did seem excited at the event about to take place. "First one there wins."  
He soon began the countdown, and Ludwig, who was utterly confused (he went along with it anyway though), leaned over so he could speak to Alice.  
"…What's the point of this? Some sort of training?" He asked, not even daring to hide his confusion from the princess.  
"Training? What did you mean training? This is just for fun!" She happily responded.  
Emilio said 'go' and the three Austrians were soon off, their horses putting in their all. Ludwig stayed behind, his face still confused. "…fun…?" He said quietly. It was a foreign sort of word to him…he knew what it meant, obviously…but it was like he had never heard it before. Nevertheless, he decided to just go with it and joined in the race seconds later.

* * *

"Blitz is a fast horse!" Antonio praised as he made it into the courtyard. "You started last, yet you got here first!"  
"I will admit," Emilio started, "He is a fine horse. Bred well, and trained well."  
Ludwig smiled sheepishly. He wasn't used to compliments about things that had anything to do with him, but Blitz seemed happy about the attention he was getting, so he was happy for his horse.  
"He's right, Ludwig," Alice said. "I haven't seen a horse able to outrun Benjamin!" She patted the red bay's neck, telling him that he did a good job. Even if he wasn't technically her horse (he was Arthur's), it was almost like he was.  
"You're okay, Ludwig! Any friend of the princess' is a friend of mine!" Antonio exclaimed, and Emilio nodded in agreement. He was a good guy, all together.

* * *

"That one looks like a rabbit," Alice said happily, pointing up at the dark night sky. "See its tail?"  
Ludwig laughed softly, trying to find a star pattern of his own. "Is that Draco?" He questioned, pointing at what looked like the famous dragon constellation.  
"Looks like it."  
"I'll tell you Alice, this is fun. I've never done this before."  
"Never?" Alice asked in slight disbelief. "My brother and I used to do this all the time."  
There she went again, mentioning Lovino. Ludwig knew that she couldn't help it; she must have missed him terribly. Those feelings that he had when the first met came up again; he wanted to tell her that he was okay…but he couldn't. It would ruin everything.  
"I remember my father used to tell me a story," the princess started again, "He said all the great kings of the past live within the stars; watching over us…"  
"…do you think Heinrich is up there?" Ludwig said, even though he didn't mean to say that out loud. Realizing what he had said was probably a mistake; he sat up from the grass and became acquainted with his feet.  
Alice sat up, holding her hand out, as if to touch his shoulder in a form of comfort. She retracted her hand once he started to speak, though. "He's gone, but…it feels like…he's still here. I didn't know him that well, he died when I was very young…but he's still…a part of me."  
"…my father said that there was darkness inside him that he couldn't control." Although Alice was beginning to doubt what the history books said. She didn't know the former King of Prussia, so she had no real right to judge him.  
"…what's if there's darkness inside me too…?"

* * *

Roderich stood on the roof of his palace, looking up on the stars. He wanted help, he needed help, and as always, he went to the stars. "I need…guidance. Ludwig…he's one of them. Heinrich's heir. What should I do…"  
"Roderich?" Elizaveta called from behind him. Within mere moments she was next to him, and she looked concerned.  
"I was, ah, seeking guidance from the great kings," he said.  
"…did they help?"  
The king smiled slightly and looked at the sky again. "Silent as stars."  
"You know, Roderich…Ludwig may not be all that bad," Elizaveta suggested. She could see it in her daughter's face. There was something there. She didn't exactly know quite what, but she could see the smiles that always lingered Alice's face…  
"What do you mean by that?" Roderich asked, his curiosity peeked.  
"Get to know him. Don't you see Alice's smiles? She likes him, I can tell."

* * *

"I'm going to…head back," Ludwig said in a monotone voice, making slow steps in the direction of the palace.  
"Ludwig, wait," Alice called to him, but he just kept walking.  
And then suddenly there was a gray horse in front of the Prussian prince, startling him and catching him off guard. "Where do you think you're going?" The horse's rider asked, dismounting and revealing himself as the man with the hair he kept tied up.  
"Does it matter?" Ludwig questioned.  
"You may not think it does," the man said.  
Alice had walked over to stand next to the blonde, smiling, almost sheepishly.  
"…Who is this guy?" He asked.  
"…A friend of the family," she said simply, not knowing any other way to word it.  
"That's the best you can do?" The man said in a teasing sort of tone. "My name is Yao, and the princess is correct. Come with me and Asher, I have a riddle for you!"  
Yao then took his gray horse's reins and began to walk in a different direction. Alice followed him almost immediately, but Ludwig hesitated.  
"Ludwig, come on!"

* * *

It had been years since Alice had visited Yao; the man was like family to her. He always gave her a painting for her birthday, and each and every one of them she hung in her bedroom. Most of them were flowers or cute animals (one or two of them was of a cat, and some were of rabbits), but the princess's favorite was the one she had received on her seventeenth birthday. It was a painting of Alice herself, and she stood with a magnificent blue dragon. She hung that painting in the perfect place, right in the center of the wall so it would be the first thing she saw when she woke up.  
"Is this one new?" She asked, noticing that Ludwig had been looking at a painting of a night sky, complete with the full moon, which gave off an ominous glow. Yao looked over at them, his brown eye widening slightly when he was the painting upon which they spoke of.  
"It is," he said, grabbing a book from a nearby table and taking a seat on a couch.  
"It's beautiful." Ludwig had never seen such a thing; he liked to paint when he was younger, but he grew out of it because he didn't think he was very good. "How long have you been painting?"  
"It's been a while," he commented. "I believe I started when I was about your age, maybe a little younger…" He trailed off as he focused on trying to find whatever page he was looking for. His eyes were focused and slightly tense.  
Alice smiled at the curiosity that her blonde friend showed; he seemed to like Yao's paintings very much.  
"Come over here you two," Yao called. "I have a proverb I want to share with you." Alice and Ludwig walked over to the couch and took seats, their eyes glittering with curiosity, wondering what the man would say.  
"What is it?" The princess asked, on the edge of her seat in anticipation.  
"It is: 'A flower cannot blossom without sunshine'."  
"…And?" The Prussian asked, sounding even the slightest bit disappointed. What did flowers have to do with anything?  
Yao smiled at the heirs. "I would like you two to figure out what it means," he said simply, as if it was everyday knowledge and everyone who was anyone should know it. "You can find the full proverb in many books, but the true meaning is different to many. You are free to use my library and you may borrow any books you like, and I wish you good luck."

Although the two of them had searched Yao's library to the best of their abilities, they didn't make any real progress. Alice had found a book of old Chinese proverbs, but the book was very large and she wasn't able to find the proverb quickly, so she asked him if she could borrow it, to which he agreed with a smile.  
Ludwig was still confused. He didn't understand what the point of finding out the meaning of a proverb had to do with anything. He thought they should be using their time to help Alice prepare for her swordfighters assessment, but the princess was determined to find out what the meaning to this riddle was.

* * *

It was a few days before Alice had confronted Ludwig, almost singing 'I know what it means! I know what it means!' and he soon found that she wanted him to come with her to tell Yao her findings. The prince agreed, because he too was curious. He wanted to know what a flower could mean, and what the sunshine meant, and just…what it meant in general.

* * *

Yao had been working on his painting of the heirs when they knocked on his door. He was finished with the figures of the prince and princess; he just had to finish the background. He was thinking a ballroom…  
Not wanting to keep the subjects of his painting waiting any longer, he covered it with a tarp and headed to the door to let his guests in.

"So you've found the full proverb and you know what it means? I expected nothing less, princess," Yao said as he sipped from his cup of tea.  
Ludwig nodded. "Ja, that's what she says."  
"The full proverb is 'A flower cannot blossom without sunshine nor a garden without love'. Does it mean that love doesn't just happen? It has to have the chance to bloom, like a flower?" Alice asked, titling her head slightly as if she doubted herself, although Yao could clearly see in her eyes that she was confident in her answer.  
"Just the answer I would expect," he said. "That is one of the meanings that it can have. I personally believe that is what it means."  
Ludwig nodded again, taking in the information. So the flower represented love, and the sunshine was needed to help love grow…then love would blossom, like a flower…it all made sense now. He felt silly for not understanding it sooner.

* * *

"Do you think we have time for a sword fighting lesson?" Alice asked all of sudden out of nowhere as the two of them entered the courtyard.  
It was still early in the day. "We do." Ludwig felt strange being without his sword for so long. He felt like he couldn't protect himself, even though his brother had trained him in hand-to-hand combat very well.  
"Great~! I'll go get the swords!"

"Your form is better," Ludwig noted. The sparring match hadn't even started yet. "You have good balance, and you seem relaxed."  
"I'm usually relaxed after I visit Yao. It's been a while though," she said.

"You…are ready." Alice's brown eyes widened in surprise at Ludwig's words; they glittered with a touch of happiness. Had she really beaten him in a match? Did it really happen, or was it just a dream? If it was a dream, she didn't want to wake up.  
"I'll beat Antonio now! I can win, and then I'll be a real swordfighter!" She cheered, happiness radiating off of her aura.  
The prince smiled, happy that she was happy. She had put forth a lot of effort in the training, and now she would finally get what she was working so hard for.  
He didn't have the heart to tell her that she could have challenged Antonio days ago and won…he just wanted to spend more time with her.

* * *

"Did Ludwig really teach you? That was a tough match!" Antonio said from his spot, patting Alice on the shoulder in recognition. She had won. After so many months of training, she had won.  
Emilio rolled his eyes. He knew that his brother still held back. He could tell, because he had fought him before. When he was first training as a swordfighter, his older brother was his teacher, and come assessment time…it was then that he realized that wielding a gun was better for him.  
Alice had no idea what his brother could really do.  
The princess ran over to her blonde friend and hugged him tightly, nearly toppling them both over. She thanked him over and over for training her, she said that she couldn't have done it without him…she was very happy.  
"Alice," Roderich called, drawing her attention and making her smile falter for only a second. It came back even brighter when she saw that her father was holding what looked like a medal.  
She instinctively tensed up and stood stiff as a board.  
"This is the medal to commemorate those who have passed the swordfighter assessment," he explained, even though he knew that she already knew what it was. She could just barely remember one of the younger soldiers getting his, although his name slipped her mind. "In honor of your defeat of High Commander Antonio Fernandez, I present you with this medal." He pinned the medal on Alice's chainmail, making sure to clip it between the coils so it would stay. "You, Alice Edelstein, are now a full-fledged swordfighter. I congratulate you and wish you good luck in the future," he spoke with obvious pride in his voice, and once he was finished, he kissed his daughter on the forehead.

* * *

Throughout the rest of the day, Alice wore the swordfighter medal, even though she had taken off the chainmail and put her sword away. She felt immense pride in herself, and she was happy as she could ever be.  
The medal itself was the size of the average medal, with red ribbon attached to it, the main color of the Austrian flag. It made Alice feel important, to finally be able to wear it.

* * *

She had come to see him in his cell before she went to sleep. Emilio kept a close watch on the two of them, his eyes always carrying a weary glare.  
"You did excellent," Ludwig praised. "Your form was perfect, and your muscles rarely tensed. You will be a great swordfighter."  
It wasn't like she was going to be fighting in any wars anytime soon. Roderich would more than likely die first.  
She smiled at his words. The two heirs engaged in a bit of small talk for a few moments before Emilio interrupted them, telling her that it was time for her to leave and go to bed.  
The commander escorted her back to her room, leaving Ludwig alone yet again.

He felt strange. It was all part of the plan, but the prince felt like it was something more. There was something there. Like the flower that Yao spoke of in that proverb of his. Was there a flower nesting its way in Ludwig's heart?

…He knew his brother wouldn't be happy.

* * *

**Oh my.**

**Anyone who knows the Lion King II as well as I do...know what must happen next. Something that I've been waiting for dreadfully, ever since the first day when I was doing the character list...**  
**Am I the only one that really really really wants to go to Yao's house? It sounds so cool -w- A library, and paintings everywhere? I would love to take a trip there. One day I will find some house and I will make it like his and then I'll be dying on the inside because it's so cool and everyone else is jealous.**

**Try to figure out what the titles of the chapters mean! Hint: The fic is called The Course of Venom.**

**Until next time, I'm off to go do more things related to Black Cat~**  
**-Zephyrbolt**


	6. V Infection

**This chapter is short and for that I apologize. I have it all planned out so if you want to complain cry about it to someone who cares. For some reason I enjoyed this chapter, and then I cried...hey, any fan of Lion King 2 knew it was going to happen!**

* * *

V. Infection

_ "You know, Roderich…Ludwig may not be all that bad," Elizaveta suggested. She could see it in her daughter's face. There was something there. She didn't exactly know quite what, but she could see the smiles that always lingered Alice's face…  
"What do you mean by that?" Roderich asked, his curiosity peeked.  
"Get to know him. Don't you see Alice's smiles? She likes him, I can tell."_

* * *

Ludwig paced nervously in his cell, working out various scenarios in his head, muttering to himself every so often.  
"Alice, listen…" he began. "Gilbert…had a plan, and…I was a part of it…but I don't want to be anymore!" _Because I love you.  
_"No, she'll never believe that…" He scolded himself, shaking his head. "But I have to try something."  
"Ludwig!" Alice's voice chimed in from the stairway, and the princess herself soon made her appearance. "Good morning."  
He nodded in acknowledgement to her, his mind still on overdrive. "Alice, I have to tell you something-" She frowned, but not a frown like she was upset, it was like a child's who was watching something interesting. She looked curious.  
"Alice!" That was Roderich, who had appeared in the doorway seconds later. His face made him look like he was angry, and for a moment Ludwig wondered what he had done wrong. "I don't want you talking to him." Here it was, the big moment when he finally gets kicked out.

"…_I _want to talk to him."

* * *

"What?! Are you certain?" Gilbert yelled at Elise, the girl herself not seeming fazed. She just nodded. Her eyes didn't lie. She saw them. She saw Roderich, and she saw Ludwig…they were together, just walking, talking as if they were old friends! Ludwig had done nothing to even show the Austrian king that he was supposed to be a threat.  
From his place in the throne room, Lovino raised an eyebrow. So maybe the little runt was able to show some control after all.  
Gilbert practically growled as if he were an animal. "Ludwig cannot betray us."

* * *

"…I have seen something in Alice these past few days," Roderich said as he and the prince walked among a field, getting closer and closer to the area that was destroyed by the fire. "She smiles."  
"…has she not smiled in a long time?" The blonde prince asked, curious. He saw no reason why Alice shouldn't smile.  
The king shook his head and sighed slightly. "No, she has smiled plenty. It's different when she's with you. I haven't seen that smile of her face in seven years." It was painfully obvious to Ludwig that he was referring to Lovino. He had run away seven years ago.  
For a moment he wondered what Roderich's view on that entire situation was. Did he still believe that his elder son was alive, as Alice did? Or had he accepted the more…realistic view? Alice he could maybe get away with telling, but Ludwig knew he would be a dead man if he let it slip that Lovino was living in Prussia.  
Ludwig was silent; he wasn't sure what to say._  
_ Roderich looked up at the gray sky, sighing again. "…I won't bother asking about your relationship with your brother," he said with a slight hint of venom in his voice. He was obviously speaking of Gilbert. "But…what of your other brother? Heinrich II? What was he like?" The Austrian king was curious. He knew nothing about the former Prussian king, and he felt that if he knew more, he could…understand his choices, per say.  
"I don't remember very much about him," Ludwig admitting, shrugging. "I was very young at the time…but I do remember he would read me stories at night when I couldn't sleep. And I remember…he was always…_away._"  
Roderich mused on these words for a few seconds, his violet eyes clearly focused. "I will hold nothing against you for the things that happened in the past concerning our kingdoms." Now that he had a chance to talk to the boy…he learned that the prince wasn't really all that bad.  
"It's appreciated."  
A silence filled the air, the only sound being the two sets of footsteps, the two of them getting closer to the damage the flames had done.  
"What I believe is…and feel free to voice your opinion," Roderich suddenly said, "…Heinrich…seemed…consumed. By power. It was like he would stop at nothing to achieve an empire that he felt he deserved."  
"You may be right or you may be wrong. I do remember…he was always away, speaking with the generals about the next step in the supposed quest for the greatest empire in the world. Was he….really a killer like all the books in your library say, though…? That's what I wonder."  
The king smiled softly at Ludwig's words, and looked around at the charred remains of what once was a beautiful field filled with life. "Fire is a true killer…Ludwig, let me show you something," he said, kneeling down so he could touch the ground, the prince mimicking his actions. He then brushed dirt away gently, speaking as he did so. "Sometimes, what's left behind…can grow better than the generation before it." In the place where the dirt once was, there was a tiny green sapling; a sapling, which with proper care, would one day grow to be something great. "…if given the chance."  
Ludwig's blue eyes widened slightly at his words as he looked at the little sapling. It was so tiny, yet it was trying so desperately to hang on to life.  
The air suddenly became tense as the temperature felt as if it dropped ten degrees or more. The two figures of royalty stood up, looking around, wondering what was going on. A manically laughter filled the air, and they quickly realized that they were being surrounded.  
It was easy to tell from the red and black Prussian uniforms the soldiers wore what was going on.  
"Roderich, what could you ever be doing out here? All…alone?"  
"_Gilbert_," Roderich hissed once the albino himself had made his appearance. His eyes darted about, looking for a way out, and then they widened in horror.  
Lovino was there. Next to him. _On their side_.  
"…You're alive," he said, a sudden wave of happiness going through his body. After seven years of not seeing his son, all the doubt that he was alive was washed away. Why…? Why had he chosen to go to Prussia?  
Gilbert smiled his trademark snake's smile. It was just like he wanted; it was the only reason he accepted Lovino in the first place. Roderich would be more vulnerable, and the boy didn't even acknowledge his father, he just stared at him with the malice! It was all so…perfect.  
"Well done Ludwig," he finally said after what seemed like years of tense silence. "Just like we always planned."  
Roderich's eyes widened again, and a look of pure anger came across his face as he turned back to face the Prussian prince, who's own blue eyes were wide like his, only with fright. "You!"  
"No- wait, I had nothing to do with this!"  
The sound of swords being unsheathed filled the background. There were at least six of them, not counting Gilbert, Lovino, and Elise, who stood by the king's side, like they were his closet advisors…  
Roderich had no weapon, except for a knife that he kept in his boot for hand-to-hand combat, but would that really get him anywhere in a situation like this? He needed to get away, and fast. He didn't want to think about what could happen.  
"Attack!" Gilbert called, and all at once all the soldiers, including Elise and his own son, started to circle the king, looking for a point of attack. By this time, Roderich had pulled the knife out of his boot, hoping that he could do something with it, and he did know some key pressure points that could help him get away.  
"No!" Ludwig yelled. This surprised Roderich, but at the same time he knew it was probably a trick for him to lower his defenses even more.

Ludwig had tried helping Roderich defend himself from the entourage of rapid attacks, but he was knocked to the side and soon found himself unconscious because of an unfortunate encounter with a rock.  
Roderich struggled to keep his composure and avoid panic, but they just kept coming, no matter what he did to swat them away. He tried jabbing at them in the temple, which, with enough force, would leave them woozy, but a chance for such an attack never presented itself. He already had been generously given a large slash that tore through his uniform, staining the white fabric with his blood; he also had cuts on his face that were bleeding at a rapid rate.  
If anything, the blood lose would kill him.

With five of the soldiers incapacitated, if only for a few moments, Roderich took the risk and managed to get himself away from them. The remaining three (which consisted of Elise, Lovino, and Emil) followed him.  
The large valley only a few feet away looked inviting. Roderich made his way down the slope as quickly as he could, the soldiers never once losing their place in whatever kind of chase this was to be called. There was an additional amount of footsteps added in to the mix, and with horror, the king realized that the other soldiers had recovered.  
"Yes! We've got him now!" Gilbert practically squealed in delight, his red eyes glittering as he watched his soldiers hone in on his bitter hated enemy. "Remember what I've taught you! Move as one!"  
Roderich's only hope was climbing the weak, newly built dam. It wasn't that well supported and it was made out of wooden logs, but it was the only thing he could do…  
And so, the Austrian king began a hard climb up the dam, and with no real stairs, it was essentially like he was playing death right there and then.  
At this point all the soldiers (including Gilbert) were at the bottom of the dam. Gilbert's eyes flashed with anger as they darted about, looking for some way to cut him off.  
"Roderich, up here!" Ludwig called from atop the dam; gaining consciousness only a few minutes earlier, he quickly followed the noise and was going to do whatever he could to help Alice's father.  
"Now's your chance, Ludwig! Get him!"  
The prince ignored his brother, instead looking for a way that he could get to the king, so that he would be able to help him.  
Gilbert gritted his teeth, consumed by his anger, his eyes on frenzy in search of what he could use. A look full of malice took over his face as he zoned his field of vision on a certain Austrian prince. An Austrian prince, who clearly believed that he deserved better than the treatment that was given to him; a prince that would more than likely do whatever it took to change Gilbert's opinion of him.  
"Lovino!" He snapped, quickly getting his and Elise's attention, as well as the other soldiers, all of their eyes wide and panicky, but still with the intent to kill. "You want to impress me? Get him!"  
Roderich looked back then, he was about half way up the dam, and his violet eyes were wide with fear. So his own son would be sent to kill him? What a…twist of events. The king shook his head then, beginning to climb up the dam once again. His only focus was to get out; to survive. If he died than his kingdom would die with him.  
Lovino hesitated for a moment, his green eyes blank, but he soon had a look similar to Gilbert's on his face, and he began his own ascension up the wooden dam on a mission to kill his father.  
Gilbert's red eyes glittered with pure joy; Lovino got him. He had only grabbed his ankle, but he got him. Roderich desperately tried to shake his elder son away from him. His survival instincts had kicked in long ago, and all he cared about what saving himself and preserving his kingdom.  
_This is for Alice.  
_ No one expected what happened next. Just as Lovino was about to draw a knife, his ankle slipped, and his grip on Roderich vanished. The log beneath the prince gave in completely, and as it fell, it took him down with it.  
"No!" Gilbert yelled.  
Roderich looked back for a moment, a look of pure sorrow on his face; his eyes saying how sorry he was…he…now truly had only one child. He lowered his head for a moment in respect, and then continued on his way. When he reached the top of the dam, he saw that Ludwig had disappeared…he scoffed under his breath. The king then steadily began his limp back to his palace, his hand gripping his chest in an attempt to stop the bleeding.

Gilbert rushed to the scene of the horrors that had taken place; but someone had beaten him there: Ludwig. While the king was frozen with shock, his younger brother had made his way down and was now trying to clear away the rubble, possibly in an attempt to save someone who could have been his friend. That's all he really wanted…  
The king pushed his brother out of the way, and he himself began to push away broken pieces of the logs, desperately trying to find his fallen soldier.  
And there he was.  
"Lovino…" Elise, who had cautiously walked over to stand beside Gilbert, said sadly. Her eyes were watery with tears, and her voice was shaky with sobs. Gilbert's own eyes teared up, and the soldiers behind him all bowed their head in respect.  
Ludwig and Elise seemed to be the ones that were crying the most out of the three of them.

* * *

Roderich's eyes were glued to the floor, his breathing ragged. He had to keep going, he had to get home. The amount of the blood he had lost was making him dizzy, and he felt like he could collapse at any moment.  
Alice had been standing a few meters away with Emilio and Antonio, as well as Arthur. They all were waiting for the king's return. Alice's brown eyes widened with horror when she realized that her father was hurt.  
"Father!" She called, running toward him.  
"Roderich- talk to me! What happened?" Antonio asked with a sort of quick step in his voice, and a touch of anger.  
"Ludwig- it was- an ambush," he coughed out. He was clearly struggling to breathe.  
Alice shook her head in disbelief. "No…"  
The king would have fallen face first on the ground, but Emilio caught him. He and his brother hitched his arms over their shoulders so they could help him to stand.  
"It's okay," Emilio said. "We'll fix it."

* * *

"Heinrich, watch over this poor boy…" Gilbert said; his head bowed in respect for Lovino, his fallen soldier. He didn't want it to end like this.  
A thought suddenly came to mind. Ludwig could have saved him. He could have still been alive. It was his brother's fault.  
Unsheathing his sword quickly, Gilbert, letting his anger control him, lashed out at his brother, who was unable to draw his sword quick enough to counter the attack, and in reflex blocked the sword with his arm.  
A stinging pain went up his arm and through his shoulders, and his sleeve was quickly stained with his own blood. Because of the intense pressure behind that blade, Ludwig knew the inflicted wound would probably leave a scar in its wake.  
Gilbert lowered his sword, his eyes narrowing. "…What have you done?" He spat, his voice border line shouting.  
"I didn't…mean for this to happen-" Ludwig stuttered, slightly afraid, but then he realized that there was no reason for him to be afraid of his brother. He had no fault in what happened to Lovino. "I did nothing!"  
"Exactly! And by doing nothing, you have betrayed your kingdom…betrayed Heinrich!"  
"I want nothing more to do with him!"  
The conversation had suddenly become a shouting contest between the brothers. "You cannot escape it! Lovino is dead because of you!"  
"No," Ludwig said, shaking his head.  
"He only wanted to be left alone and you killed him!"  
"No!" The prince shook his head again, this time more fiercely, before turning away and running from the scene.  
A few of the soldiers tensed up, ready to chase after him if they were given the command.  
Gilbert held his hand out, silently telling them no. "Let him go. Roderich has hurt me for the last time…and now he's corrupted Ludwig!" He had his soldiers' attention now. "Listen to me, Roderich is injured and weak. Now is the time to attack! We will take his entire kingdom by force!"

* * *

"Father, please tell me it isn't true…" Alice muttered. Roderich had told them the entire story of what had happened. Elizaveta, who was by his side, shook her head in disappointment. She didn't want to believe it either; she saw light in the Prussian prince. It just seemed so…unlike him to plan such a thing to happen. Had it really all been a trick?  
The three of the royals (including Arthur, Antonio, and Emilio) were atop the roof of the palace overlooking the courtyard. They had only stopped here because they knew that if they didn't get medical help right away Roderich would have died. They couldn't go any further, and thanks to Arthur and his agility, they were able to patch up the king's wounds.  
"Sir, Ludwig is heading this way. What shall we do?" One of his soldiers, a lieutenant with straight brown hair asked as he lowered his binoculars.  
"Let him come."

* * *

Ignoring the mutters of disgust that were coming from the circle of Austrian soldiers, Ludwig raised his head to face Roderich, who was weakly standing; he was able to stand on his own, but Arthur stood close just in case.  
Roderich's violet eyes were brim with obvious anger. "Why have you come back?"  
Ludwig's eyes, on the other hand, contained an emotion that could only be seen as grief. Was he sorry? "Roderich, I had nothing to do with what Gilbert did-"  
"You don't belong here!"  
Slightly frustrated that he wasn't getting a chance to speak, the prince attempted to speak again. "I only ask for you to listen. I ask for your forgiveness..."  
"Father, please…listen to him!" Alice pleaded, desperation in her eyes. It wasn't fair.  
"Quiet!" He snapped at her, successfully in the act before he turned back to Ludwig. "Remember when you first came here, Prussian? You asked for judgment, well here it is!"  
The soldiers that made up the circle around Ludwig shouted different insults at him, encouraging their king to get it over with.  
"You are sentenced to exile! Leave now and I won't send my soldiers after you!" As if to prove his point, a few of the soldiers drew their swords, their muscles tensing as they prepared for a possible attack.  
"No!" Alice gasped, wanting to go down and help him, but she was held back by her mother.

* * *

Ludwig had no real choice but to leave the vicinity of the palace, at least to the point of where they couldn't see him. Where was he to go? His brother didn't seem to want anything to do with him…and Roderich now hated him.  
What was he to do?

* * *

**I expect something hateish in reviews and comments. I didn't want to do it either.**

**Should I write a special for One of Us like I did with My Lullaby? I'll probably do it anyway. Just because I lovvee that song. _Born in grief, raised in hate, helpless to defy his fate...let him run, let him live, but do not forget what we can not forgive!_**

******If you haven't voted on the poll, go do that please. And yeah, that's about it.  
Bulgaria had a cameo in this chapter by the way.**

**-Zephyrbolt**


	7. VI Nausea

**These chapters seem to be getting shorter...well there's only one left after this. It's been fun. Oh yeah. The chapter titles. I've tell you next time. If you know don't spoil it.**

* * *

VI. Nausea

Alice, now free from Elizaveta's grasp, made her way cautiously to her father's side; the king himself looked like a stone statue, his face poise and strict. "Father, please reconsider…" she said, her voice slow and careful.  
Roderich didn't answer her question; he didn't even look at her. "From now on you will go nowhere without an escort."  
"No! That's not fair-"  
"He used you to get to me!"  
Alice, bewildered with what her father suggested, shook her head quickly. "No! He loves me-for me!"  
"Because you are my daughter!"  
"You don't know him!"  
"I don't need to know him to know what he wants," Roderich said, turning away from her and facing the courtyard, but avoiding any eye contact with his soldiers. "He is Prussian and he's following in Heinrich's footsteps! And I must follow in my father's…"  
"You will never be Augustus!"  
Roderich's violet eyes widened in disbelief at his daughter's words. He wanted to say something else, but by the time he had turned back to face her, she had already run off into the palace.

* * *

Alice, even though her vision was blurry from crying, easily made it to her room and easily proceeded to cry her eyes out on her bed. It just wasn't fair! Her father didn't even listen to what Ludwig had to say!  
Looking up, she saw her window. The window that led to the roof of the palace and eventually an exit. Wiping away tears, the princess stood up from her bed. Grabbing her sword from where it lay on the floor in its sheath, she opened her window carefully as not to make a sound, and slipped outside.  
No one was around. Alice was able to escape undetected.

* * *

Yao, who had been working on some finishing touches on the painting of the two heirs, was a bit startled when he heard a knock at his door. Placing his brush to the side, he stood up and covered up the painting with a sheet. Even though it was finished, he didn't want anyone to see it. It was going to be a surprise.  
"…Ludwig? What are you doing out so late?" He asked, but Ludwig didn't even have to say anything. His eyes did all the talking; they were red and slightly puffy, like he had just cried. "Come in."

* * *

Once she had made it to the field where she and Ludwig once shared a stargazing experience, Alice stopped running to catch her breath. She would run forever, if she had to.  
_She would find him._  
"Ludwig…?" She looked around the field, as if by some bizarre means he was somehow hiding in plain sight from her. Her eyes grew sad and even her curl drooped from the sadness she felt.  
For a moment that upbeat attitude she always carried faded away, and she wondered what would happen if she never found him. But then she shook her head, dismissing such thoughts. She would find him.  
Her head lifted as a breeze of wind blew by; she thought she heard a voice. It sounded familiar…  
The sadness of recent events only brought up thoughts of her brother. Now more than ever, she wanted him here with her. Wherever he was, wherever he had run away to, she wanted him back.

* * *

Yao handed Ludwig a cup of tea as he took a seat opposite of the young prince. He had heard the whole story, and being completely honest it tugged at his heart strings. Maybe he had lived too long to ever love again- but he knew what it was like to lose the one you love.  
The moment Ludwig had told him of the ill fate that Lovino met…well, that struck a chord. Yao could remember the day the boy was born. It hurt to hear that he was gone. For real this time.  
"When were you planning on telling her?" He asked on the topic of Alice's nonexistence knowledge of her brother. He had lived in Prussia all these years, hiding…and Ludwig knew.  
The Prussian's blue eyes lowered. "I don't know. I wanted to tell her, but…I could tell from Lovino's eyes," he stated. "He ran away for a reason and I was afraid that if I told her then Roderich would somehow find out and drag him back to what he left."  
"It makes sense," Yao said, nodding. "He did always have a rebellious side; he didn't like playing by the rules."

* * *

Alice's brown eyes were puffy yet again from the tears newly shed, but despite the trials she faced, she walked on, her posture quick and alert.  
"If I'm not mistaken you're looking for something," a voice said from behind her, and upon turning, she saw Yao standing there, a quirky look on his face.  
The princess was happy to see her friend. She ran up to him and embraced him in a tight hug, a hug that said 'Please don't let me go'. The man could sense that she was on overdrive with her emotions, and in an attempt to comfort her, he didn't let go. Not until she did.  
"So if you're looking for something; follow me! I know the way!"  
Alice wasn't entirely sure Yao knew that she was looking for Ludwig, but then again, the man was rarely wrong.

* * *

It was silent walk to Yao's home. The two of them held each other's hand; it was more for Alice, so she didn't feel so alone.

* * *

No words were spoken when Alice and Ludwig made eye contact. Their eyes did more talking then their mouths ever could hope to. The two heirs were ecstatic to see that the other was okay and well, and to see them again felt like a privilege.  
So it was no surprise that the prince cupped the princess's chin in his hands and placed a kiss on her lips.

* * *

"We will attack swiftly- with everything we've got," Gilbert said, riling up his soldier's emotions. Roderich would pay this time. He would pay for what he did to Lovino- his own son for God's sake! - And for what he did to Ludwig. No brother of his would be loyal to that damned aristocrat. The plan he had constructed seven years ago starting on that fateful day when his brother just so happened to come across a little Austrian bird wandering out of her kingdom would not go to waste. He would see it through to the end; and he would sooner die than to see it fail.

* * *

"I have wanted to give this to you two for a long time now," Yao said, taking a sheet off of a canvas. "But I could never find the right moment." The painting that he uncovered was the painting he had been working on for so long, and the one to give him the most trouble. It was nothing like that painting he did of Alice with the blue dragon, which would sound like a much more challenging project…but it wasn't for some reason.  
The painting was of Alice and of Ludwig. The two heirs stood side by side, and they were dressed in clothing that one would wear for a ball. Alice was wearing a blue and white dress that went to the floor, and it seemed to flow like the waves the ocean would give. Ludwig, on the other hand, had on a red and black tuxedo- and he pulled the look of quite nicely, even if they were looking at a painting.  
"It's beautiful," Alice commented.  
Yao said nothing to respond to her comment, he only nodded. "Once I finished it I could not get it out of my head that one day we should get these clothes made. Perhaps the two of you could wear them to the next ball- whenever that may be, given current events…"  
Ludwig didn't seem to hear half of the words the elder man had said, he only heard everything before 'clothes made'. His blue eyes widened with realization. "I know a really good tailor- she worked on the uniforms they wear in my country." And those were nice uniforms. Whoever this girl was, she had to be talented. "Her name is Camille."  
"Oh, I know Camille!" Alice suddenly said in her happy little voice. "She worked on our uniforms too!"  
Yao wouldn't mention that she was a sort of neutral party in the land of the two warring kingdoms. If someone wanted fabrics sewn into clothes, then Camille was the woman to go to. The woman carried a perky, energy-filled air about her, and she was excellent when working with a needle and thread.

* * *

"What's the count?" Emilio asked from his place of pacing back and forth nervously. He knew the king would be angry, and the king was very much like his brother when he was made angry…you didn't want him angry.  
Antonio, as usual, didn't seem to understand the seriousness of the situation at hand. "On the count of us losing the princess, now would be…five? Six? I don't know." He shrugged. "Maybe we should get a bell for her."  
Emilio groaned and rubbed his temples at his brother's ignorance, trying to soothe away an oncoming migraine it would seem. "This time for sure Roderich will have our heads…I thought you were going to watch her."  
"Me? I thought you were!"  
A full-out argument broke out between the two military commanders, one that would have involved wrestling like when they were children, but Roderich, who had just arrived in the room, broke them up before they even started with any sort of fight.  
"…What are you doing?" The king asked, an eyebrow raised in curiosity.  
Both of them immediately stiffened up and pretended that the events of the past few minutes had never happened.  
Emilio was the first to clear his throat, and he took a tentative step toward Roderich. "Well, uh, nothing but- you see, we have a little…situation. Let's say, hypothetically, there's this guy-"  
"But he's not the king!" Antonio added in, which gave away the situation completely, but Roderich seemed amused by it.  
"Defiantly not the king- and let's say his daughter…er…vanished."  
"Alice is _gone_?" Roderich sputtered out, when he probably should have expected such a thing. She was just like her brother. Always looking for a way to break the rules.  
The two brothers had gone silent, their faces pale with nervousness.

* * *

"What?" Alice shouted in disbelief. "What do you mean Lovino is dead?!" Her brown eyes were watering up with tears. It couldn't be true! How could he just…she hadn't seen him in seven years, and then this happens? How could he just live in Prussia all these years? Her emotions were on overdrive; she felt angry at Lovino for doing such things, but at the same time she could understand why he had done them.  
Yao had taken it upon himself to be as gentle as possible with delivering the news of the ill fate her brother had met. He knew her reaction wouldn't be pretty.  
Ludwig looked like he would cry again, but he didn't. He had spent all his tears in earlier events, including when the event in question happened.  
Like before, the princess had collapsed onto Yao's chest (He was the closet to her.) and was crying her eyes out. She said some things, but because of her state, they were very inaudible.  
"It was instant," Ludwig said, trying to ease up the tension in the air and hopefully comfort her. "He didn't feel any pain." This, hopefully, was true. The Prussian prince had no idea if the incident was in fact instant, or if Lovino had been laying there in intense pain for even a few seconds. He wanted Alice to feel better though. If Lovino were still alive, he probably would have been okay with Ludwig lying about his fate, if only to help his sister with coping. He was just that kind of brother. For a brief moment, Ludwig wondered what it would be like to have a brother like that.  
"We have…" Alice started, calming down; her body wasn't shaking anymore. She stood up away from Yao, and stared at the ground. "We have to go back."  
"What? Are you…joking?" Ludwig said tentatively. He didn't want to upset her any more than he already did.  
But the princess was completely serious. "If we run away…our kingdoms will be divided forever."  
Yao smiled at her words; a smile filled with pride. She would be a fine queen…one that would bring happiness and hope to her kingdom. And with Ludwig by her side as king, perhaps the two of them could usher in a new age of peace. An age where the countries of Austria and Prussia were not divided; but were seen as one. An age where death and war were not seen as ways to escape a world that does not teach peace and love…

* * *

"It wasn't my fault, sir; I will take this moment to say that I was not aware I was supposed to be watching the princess," Emilio said, trying to calm Roderich down, lest he and his brother feel his wrath…which was never a good time.  
"It doesn't matter who was supposed to be watching her," Roderich responded, keeping his voice calm and keeping his anger under control. "What matters is that we find her."  
"Sir!" A voice said in sort of rapid babbling, and the owner was soon revealed to be Arthur. "Sir, the Prussian army is on its way! It's _war_!"

* * *

**It seems like only yesterday when I got the idea for this fic. Ah, memories...oh yeah, vote on the poll, yada yada...**  
**  
I'll probably write a PMD EoS fic next. I've been playing that a lot lately.**

**New character (even though she's only mentioned):**  
**Camille: Tailor (Belgium)**


	8. VII If Left Untreated

**Wow. Last chapter. It's been really fun. More stuff at the bottom. Enjoy the last chapter of Course of Venom.**  
**As for the chapter titles...it's venom's effects. As in, the titles tell what happens when a snake bites you. Moral of the story: Don't get bitten by a Prussia. No matter how hot he is!**

* * *

VII. If Left Untreated

At Arthur's words, the entire palace buzzed into action. Emilio and Antonio went to work preparing the army for what would perhaps end up as another war. Roderich also gave them instruction to have a foot soldier sent out and search for Alice. For all he knew, she could have been captured, or worse…he shook his head. No. He wouldn't think like that.

* * *

An hour or so later, everything was ready. The two armies met in the middle of the charred remains of the lovely fields. Roderich sighed; this was where he had shown Ludwig that little sapling.  
"It's over, Roderich," Gilbert called from his side. He was mounted on a black horse, but his soldiers were all on foot. The soldiers' faces looked rough and tough, like a rock. Perfect soldiers. Roderich's own soldiers could be like that, but they didn't want to go through with this battle. They weren't murderers; they wouldn't kill unless they had to.  
"I will give you one last chance, Gilbert," the Austrian king warned, his voice slightly shaking. Out of nervousness, no, but out of the king trying to keep his temper under control. He had learned long ago that when he let his temper get the best of him, nothing good happened. Rash decisions were made.  
Before Roderich could finish his sentence, Gilbert interrupted, putting on his trademark snake smile. "I have been waiting for this moment for years…"  
"Sheesh," Antonio said from the background.  
"Someone needs a hobby," Emilio added in, but not too loud as not to be heard by anyone other than his brother.  
"Final warning, you snake. Go home." It was getting to him, and Roderich knew that was what Gilbert wanted.  
"I _am _home," said the albino snake. "Attack!"

* * *

"Are you sure we can borrow these horses?" Alice asked politely, fidgeting on the back of Yao's gray horse, Asher. Ludwig had a horse too, Asher's brother, Sebastian, although Sebastian was a darker gray, almost black.  
"Yes, it's perfectly fine. Just stop whatever might happen." Was all Yao had said to the princess. "When you've reached a point where you can't ride, just leave them. They know how to get back."  
Ludwig nodded at the man's words, taking them in and showing him he understood. He wasn't one to disobey orders.

* * *

The two heirs made their way across the countryside, the wind whipping at their hair as well as the horses'. The horses were at their absolute limit in terms of speed, but they had to go faster, and they knew that, but they were grateful to the two humans that rode them when they didn't push them past their limits. It wasn't good for them. Still, they tried their absolute best.  
Alice's mind was on frenzy. What if they didn't get there in time? What if Gilbert killed everyone? She didn't remember very much about the Prussian king from their only meeting seven years ago, but she did remember how scary he looked, and his eyes…his extremely intense red eyes. She remembered she had thought he could kill with his eyes alone. Whatever the case, he looked just the type to be able to kill so many in such little time.  
Ludwig's thoughts were close to Alice's, although he was worried more about the princess's family. It was strange, how their thoughts were reversed, although at the same time it wasn't. Ludwig wasn't really concerned about his brother anymore. Ever since what happened with Lovino…he was happy that Alice was dealing with the loss so well.  
There would be time to grieve later.

* * *

Gilbert observed the battle that was going on below. Now wasn't the time to get involved. His red eyes were focused on Roderich, he was watching, observing, learning the king's battle strategies. He was locked in a sword fight with one of his best soldiers, a small blonde called Tino. It was a great advantage to have him in his army; even though he was small and looked helpless, he was a deadly foe.  
"Roderich…" He muttered, his voice hissing like the reptiles he was often compared with. He dismounted his black horse and told it to stay put on the rock, then leaped off. Unsheathing his sword, he said, "You're mine."

* * *

"We can't go any farther," Ludwig said when the two of them had reached the edge of the wooden dam that had taken Lovino's life.  
Alice quickly dismounted from Asher. "We'll have to leave them here. Yao said they know how to get back."  
The blonde prince nodded in agreement. He dismounted Sebastian, and then the two of them tried to work out a strategy pertaining how to get across the dam and onto the other side.  
It came down to a desperate solution: they would have to walk across. Alice was never one to shy away from something that seemed risky and dangerous, but she knew what risks came with crossing. If one of them slipped, then- no. It wasn't right to think like that. She had to think positive.  
And so the two heirs made a daring attempt at walking across the dam. Halfway through, Ludwig sniffed the air and Alice wondered why he was doing such a thing.  
"Let's hurry," he said suddenly, his tone rushed. "It will rain soon. We have to get across."  
Alice didn't need to be told twice. Rain meant water, and water would cause the dam to be even more slippery. It could even cause it to break, if the water flow got high enough and the weight was just too much.

* * *

All the soldiers stopped and watched as Gilbert charged toward Roderich, his sword poised and ready to strike. Luckily, the Austrian king was able to get his own sword up in time to counter Gilbert.  
The Prussian soldiers felt a sense of déjà vu as a few of them thought back to what occurred at the dam.  
"You may as well give up now," Gilbert taunted, applying more pressure onto his blade to try and get Roderich to give in. In the end, however, he knew that if anything, Roderich was stubborn. He wouldn't go down without a fight.  
Stubbornly as ever, his violet eyes narrowed and he shook his head, pushing back and meeting the pressure of the blade with his own power.  
Gilbert knew force wouldn't work. He would have to physically defeat him in combat. He wanted to sigh in frustration, but he knew it wouldn't be easy. Besides, he wanted to kill him painfully and slowly. For Lovino. And for Ludwig, too. Dark clouds rolled in the skies above. A little raindrop fell on his nose.

* * *

Gilbert, who was successful in getting Roderich down on the ground during the sword fight, raised his sword in the air, ready to deal the death blow. The rain wasn't doing much to help, but sometimes it had helped with making Roderich lose his bearings and trip because of the slippery ground.  
During the entire fight, not one solider made a move, on both sides. They knew that it was up to their kings to settle what was between them. The Prussian soldiers standing in the rain with soaking-wet uniforms knew it was better than the fate they would meet if they interrupted the battle. Their king would have their heads. It didn't look like it would last much longer, either.  
But then something completely unexpected happened. With a crack of lightning, Ludwig and Alice suddenly appeared, shielding Roderich with their bodies. Gilbert, in surprise, lowered his sword.  
"Ludwig," he spat, like venom. "_Move_." Even with such a tone that could make his generals fear for their lives, his younger brother did not move. He just stood there, protecting the king and the princess of Austria with the face he had trained him to have. The face of a perfect soldier, one of stone.  
Alice kneeled down quickly to help her father get up and to regain his balance.  
"Alice, you need to get away from here," he said, placing his hands on her shoulders and trying to direct her in the direction that would lead her to the palace. But like Ludwig, his daughter just stood there with a firm look on her face.  
She shook her head slowly. "This has to stop." She was no longer a feeble child; she had matured greatly in the past few weeks alone. And she finally understood what her father had said seven years ago on the day she had first met Ludwig. _We are one._  
"You're even weaker than I thought!" Gilbert snapped, but Ludwig refused to move. His blue eyes were narrowed, and they carried certain coldness…for a moment, the Prussian king saw Heinrich instead of his precious little brother. What had happened to them-?  
"You will never hurt Roderich, or Alice," Ludwig finally said. His voice was firm, strong; just like Heinrich's on the last day Gilbert had seen him alive. "Not while I'm here." A gasp erupted from Gilbert's throat. Ludwig was exactly as he had trained him, just like Heinrich…so what was that odd emotion that was inside him? Fear? He was never afraid of his older brother.  
"Stay out of this! Go home!" Roderich said in a hushed voice to Alice, though his efforts were futile, as everyone around them could hear him.  
A small smile appeared on the princess's face. "A long time ago…a wise king once told me: We are one. At that time, I didn't understand him." She looked up, making direct eye contact with him. "Now I do."  
Roderich's eyes widened. He was happy that she was understood what he meant, but… "But, they-"  
"Them? Us? Look at them- they are us!" At her words, Roderich looked back at his soldiers. Antonio and Emilio, as war commanders, were trained not to show fear. But he could see it in the faces of the lower-ranked soldiers. Turning his head so he could look at the Prussian soldiers, he saw the very same thing. Boys scared for their lives. In the end, that's all the soldiers were. Scared little boys. "What differences do you see?"  
He wouldn't say it, but Roderich saw nothing that made his soldiers any different from Gilbert's. Even the kings themselves, they were very alike. All they wanted was good for their people. Isn't that what all kings want? Power, and good for their people. It all comes down to those few qualities that make a king a king.  
It was Roderich's turn to smile. He understood. This fighting was pointless.  
Gilbert, taking his eyes off of his younger brother, emitted a sound from his throat that sounded like a growl. "Elise, now's your chance-"  
"No," the young blonde girl said, her voice firm. Gilbert turned his head to look at her, disbelief written all over his face. "Alice is…right." She started to walk over to the Austrian side of the battlefield. When she had gotten over, she said, "Enough." Her voice carried a tone that wanted relief. She wanted it all to be done. No more fighting.  
Gilbert narrowed his red eyes and stared at the girl like she had just committed a murder. "If you will not fight…then you will die with them."  
It was the Prussian soldiers' turn to be surprised. How could he make that threat? Would he really kill such a young girl? A girl that he so kindly took in when her brother died in the war? It disgusted the soldiers. One by one, they each glared at Gilbert with disgust and walked over to join Elise, Roderich, and the others.  
"What- where are you going?!" Gilbert sputtered out. His voice was panicky. His soldiers were leaving him to go with the aristocrat-! He watched them leave him, one by one: Emil, Mathias, Tino…they were all leaving him. "Get back here!" He called, raising his voice, letting the anger out in an attempt to scare them into crawling back to him. But it didn't work.  
He was alone._ Again. _Ludwig, Elise, and all his soldiers had left him. Only this time he couldn't go to the cemetery and talk to Heinrich about it.  
"Let it go, Gilbert," Roderich said in an easing tone. He wanted everything to be right again. Just like when they were younger. "It's time to move on and put the past behind us."  
"I'll _never_ let it go!" He exclaimed angrily, drawing his sword again. No matter what Roderich thought, it was far from over. "Heinrich, this is for you…" He muttered to himself. No one seemed to hear him, but everyone's bodies did tense up in anticipation of what he might do. It was still a surprise when Gilbert suddenly charged toward them, sword aimed for Roderich. He would finish this. The nearby wooden dam cricked and cracked with the newfound weight of the water the rain brought.  
But Gilbert's path was intercepted.  
"Leave him alone!" Alice exclaimed, meeting Gilbert's sword with her own.  
"Insolent pest!" He spat. She hadn't changed at all. Even seven years ago when she looked terrified out of her wits, he could tell her true nature was like this. Maybe it was because that's what he was like when he was young. But those days were long and gone. "Fine- I will deal with you first!"  
Ludwig was about to rush to Alice's side, to defend her and ward off his brother. Before he could however, and before Roderich could even say anything, she put a hand up and smiled reassuringly at them. She had a plan.  
The princess and the Prussian king were circling each other. Waiting for someone to make the first move. Every one that surrounded them was extremely afraid that something was going to happen to Alice. Especially Ludwig and Roderich.  
"What's wrong, Princess?" Gilbert called in a taunting tone that made Roderich grit his teeth in anger. He didn't interfere, though- he would let her fight her own battle and he would only get involved if he had to. Her first _real_ sword fight would be honest. Unless Roderich had to get involved. With Gilbert, you never knew. "Too scared to make the first move?"  
Alice looked at the albino, her eyes looking annoyed. She had already figured out how he fought. He used words to get a rise out of his foe, and when they were spent, that was when he would strike. It wasn't hard at all to figure out. In the end, he was just a snake.  
Ignoring his taunting words, Alice quickly turned and started to run- run in the direction of the dam. She ignored the calls from her father and Ludwig, and she climbed down, knowing Gilbert was well behind her. He probably thought he was going to have her trapped like a snake cornering a mouse. _Wrong._ She would be the one doing the trapping. He would be the mouse.  
"How cowardly! I expected Elizaveta's daughter to stand up and fight her fears!" Gilbert called, still carrying that taunting tone in his voice. He was just trying to make her angry. She had to remind herself that several times as he made his advance on her, trying to work out a way to trap her.  
Alice stopped on a ledge that was moderately sized, minding the nearby dam that looked like it could break at any moment. Hopefully, that wouldn't happen. She just needed to lure Gilbert into a closed space so she could show him the power she truly had.  
"You've trapped yourself, Princess." He leaped down onto the ledge, taking a step toward her. "That was a dumb move."  
He thought she would look for a way out. But she didn't. She turned and was ready to face him, which surprised the Prussian king.  
"Hm, maybe you do have Elizaveta's fight in you."  
Up above, the soldiers and royals watched with wide eyes- all worried about what would happen. Roderich would personally slit Gilbert's throat if anything happened to his daughter. He already knew how to get down their quickly from the ambush attack, so he could get to her fast if he needed to.  
The sword fight began quickly. The two royals met their swords with a powerful force behind the blade, and neither of them would give up. Gilbert was surprised she had such strength. Not many could handle the power he had. The blades clashed with loud clanking noise, the noise a blacksmith heard all day.  
Then something unfortunate happened. The ledge they were on was still slick from the recent rain. Gilbert had just been unlucky enough to slip. His sword went flying in the other direction, landing on the other side of the ledge. He managed to grab onto the ledge, but he couldn't hoist himself up. If he fell-  
It was at that exact moment that the dam decided to break. Water rapidly filled the canyon, taking the logs and stray debris with it. Gilbert glanced down, his red eyes widening with fear. If he fell, he would drown!  
Alice's own brown eyes were wide too, with equal fear. Sure, maybe she didn't like the albino man. Maybe he was kind of a jerk. But she didn't want him to die. She dropped her sword and carefully (the floor was still slippery) made her way over to the edge where Gilbert was hanging on for dear life.  
At the top of the canyon, Roderich's face went pale. He began making a slow but steady decent into the canyon. Now was the time to intervene.  
"Gilbert, give me your hand-" Alice said to the older man, leaning as far as she could off the ledge without falling herself. She wanted to help him.  
But Gilbert wouldn't have anything of it. He stared at her with malice in his eyes, swatting his hand at her as if he was a cat and he had claws. But he wasn't a cat, and he didn't have claws. His "attack" only served to make his fingers shake from his weight.  
"Gilbert, come on…" Alice begged. "I'll help you!"  
The king stared at her with a strange look in his eyes. For a moment, it looked as if he would take her hand so she could help him up (and then he would get back to the fight). His fingers and arms shook, his muscles were tense, and he was losing his grip. His feet were shaking about too, trying to find something to "grab" onto so he could get a better grip.  
But it wasn't enough.  
Alice's eyes went wide and tears threatened to reveal themselves as she watched him fall. All she saw were his red eyes, wide with fear but somewhat at peace with the knowledge that he knew he was going to die. All she heard were his screams as the water took him.  
Ludwig's blue eyes quickly became watery with tears. He bowed his head and put his hand to his face, sobbing quietly. Another lose…  
Alice had her mouth covered with her hand, attempting to keep her own sobs inside but to no avail, a few managed to escape. Her shoulders shook as she continued to try to keep it inside. She didn't want it to end like this. She just wanted to protect her father for once, not the other way around- she didn't want anyone to die.  
The water finally stopped running, and the canyon was bare again, save for some debris.  
"Alice," Roderich said. He had finally gotten down to the ledge. He held out his hand for his daughter to take so they could go home.  
"Father…I…I tried."

* * *

Once the two of them had reached the top of the cliff, Ludwig helped Alice up first and then Roderich. Once he was sure she was safe, he embraced her in a tight hug. He thought he would lose her.  
Roderich could see. From their faces. He could see it perfectly. "Ludwig…" He started, getting their attention. "I was wrong. You do belong here."  
The blonde smiled. He was finally accepted.  
"Come on, let's go home." The Prussian soldiers looked up at these words. Would they be accepted like their prince had? Or, was he their king now…? Most of the soldiers sighed with relief when Roderich finished his sentence, "All of us."

* * *

With a few papers signed by Ludwig (who was officially crowned the new King of Prussia) and Roderich, all past conflicts were erased. Of course, they wouldn't be completely forgotten, and those who died would still be honored, but they would all try not to hold anymore grudges.  
A small funeral service was held for Gilbert. No one truly wanted him to die. They also paid respects to Lovino, which were long overdue. Everyone was just happy it was over. No more fighting.  
A wedding took place in a month or so between Ludwig and Alice. Yao was the one to marry them and he gave them his blessing. He had surprised them with the clothes they wore in the painting as a gift. He explained that he had paid a visit to Camille and they made the clothes together. The two of them actually decided to wear the clothes as their wedding dress, and needless to say, it was a very beautiful day all in all.  
The marriage not only was the union of two people who loved each other, but it was the union of two countries. Prussia and Austria were officially unified. Even though Roderich and Elizaveta were still the king and queen, and still in power, Ludwig and Alice would one day take over for them. But for now, they were a sort of second-in-command.  
For once, everything seemed…_right._

We are one.

* * *

Somewhere in a place that one could maybe call the afterlife, a certain former albino king sat on a bench in a field that was covered in different kinds of flowers. It was a strange thing to come here. He was transformed back into a younger version of himself…from before he was king, when his brother was still king. It was strange, but he supposed that in time, he would get used to it.  
He wondered just where he was. Was this heaven? Heaven sure was lonely then. He couldn't really remember what happened to him or how he died; he just knew that he died. One might think that he would lose all his memories upon coming to this heaven, but it was not the case. He could remember just about everything, just not…exactly how he died. He knew it involved water.  
The former, now boy king, held his hands up to his face and looked at them. He still wasn't quite used to seeing the small hands of a child and not the worn, rough hands he was used to having for so many years.  
His voice had changed too. He had tested it earlier when he first got here, to make sure he could still speak. It wasn't the voice he left the world with. It was the voice he had as a child…as an innocent little boy trying to take care of his baby brother while his big brother went off to fight…  
Suddenly; the albino boy felt a presence behind him. His muscles tensed out of reflex, and he got up off the bench, turning to face whoever it was that wanted to see him.  
His red eyes went wide. But it wasn't from fear, which he could remember feeling before he died. It was a reaction as to what he saw…to who he saw. Tears pricked at the corners of his eyes and a smile that radiated happiness peeked onto his lips.  
Abandoning the bench completely, he ran excitedly over to the figure that had approached him, shouting the figure's name like an innocent little boy again.  
The figure accepted the embrace that was handed to him, ruffling the albino boy's hair, which earned a happy laugh from him.  
"It's good to see you, Gilbert. What did you do today?"  
"I missed you," was all the boy could manage to say. He was just too happy, and his red eyes were now even redder from the tears. But they were not tears of sorrow, or anger. They were tears of pure joy. "Heinrich, you're back."  
And at that moment the white snake known as King Gilbert withdrew his fangs. His big brother was home.

* * *

**Alright be honest. Who cried? I did.**

**Do I really have to tell you who Tino and Mathias and Emil are? Well Mathias and Emil, maybe- but not Tino.  
Mathias: Denmark **  
**Emil: Iceland  
I feel like I've said who Emil is before. Hm. Probably did. Oh well.**

**But seriously guys. I just want to say thank you. To all of you lovely folks. When I first got the idea for this fic months ago...I didn't have any real plans to write it and publish and finish it. But lookie what happened.**  
**As for the inspiration for this fic, that goes to a certain little Youtube video. It was a AMV of My Lullaby and it was for Gilbert. I immediately thought it was perfect and got to work.**  
**It was tough, killing off such beloved characters as Lovino and Gilbert. What's the count now, Gilbert? Four deaths? Ah hell.**  
**But anyway the point is, I got through it. And I just had to add that little part at the end with Gilbert and Heinrich. Just had to. Because in the end, that's all Gilbert really was, wasn't he? Sure, on the outside he was a snarky little snake, but on the inside, he just wanted his big brother back.**  
**As for Lovino, I was really confused on what to do with his role for Nuka. It took me a while to work out the whole thing of him running away and living in Prussia and all that stuff. I guess in a way, for those who have read the Lion King books, Lovino could also represent Simba's first cub. Kopa, I think his name was. He wasn't in the movies. Actually, some people think Zira killed him out of revenge for Scar, and that's why she got exiled. Although I think it was because she was so loyal to Scar.**  
**Zira. Let's talk about Zira. One of the best Disney villains ever made. Not going to lie here, I liked her a lot better than Scar. Maybe because Scar was acting on envy and I guess lust, Zira acted out of pure hate and revenge and wrath and all that other stuff. She just seemed a lot more interesting to me.**  
**Oh yeah, speaking of Zira, did you know that she actually killed herself? Yep. It wasn't put into the movie obviously, but in a deleted scene, it's shown that she willingly let go of that ledge and she didn't fall. She let go. I didn't go with that for Gilbert mostly because I wanted to show a more human side to him. For some reason I feel like he wasn't human enough in this.**

**So, anyway, that's all for now. Next is Tangled!  
Ciao~**

**-Zephyrbolt**


End file.
